Each study has a usefulness score out of 100 (rubric version 4.0). Tap a score to see what makes it up.
Highest usefulness score first. Studies without a score come last.
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The present results suggest that it will be valuable to design clinical trials to investigate the effect of late-life depression prevention on risk of dementia, in particular vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis found that late-life depression is associated with an increased risk of all-cause dementia, vascular dementia, and Alzheimer's disease. The authors suggest that clinical trials should investigate whether preventing late-life depression reduces dementia risk.
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74/100
A long-term intervention with an EVOO-rich MedDiet resulted in a better cognitive function in comparison with a control diet.
Why it matters
In this randomized trial, participants on a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil showed better cognitive performance after 6.5 years than those on a low-fat control diet. The trial was in a subsample of people at high vascular risk, so results may not apply to everyone.
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The evidence base on tools for detection of delirium superimposed on dementia is limited, although some existing tools show promise.
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Cognitive training was effective in enhancing the overall cognitive functioning of less educated older adults with subjective memory complaints.
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SMART will provide a novel evaluation of the immediate and long term benefits of CT, PRT, and combined CT and PRT on global cognitive function and brain morphology, as well as potential underlying mechanisms of adaptation in older adults at risk of further cognitive decline.
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Our data show that elderly patients with DM without dementia have accelerated progression of brain atrophy with significant consequences in cognition compared to subjects without DM.
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The use of light propofol sedation decreased the prevalence of postoperative delirium by 50% compared with deep sedation.
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Among older patients with type 2 diabetes, a history of severe hypoglycemic episodes was associated with a greater risk of dementia.
Why it matters
In older patients with type 2 diabetes, having hypoglycemic episodes severe enough to require hospitalization was linked to a higher risk of later dementia, with risk rising as the number of episodes increased. This is an observational cohort finding about a risk association, not proof that preventing hypoglycemia prevents dementia.
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This will be vital in moving to a phase III trial that is pragmatic and feasible for these complex patients within the NHS.
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74/100
In this 10-week, double-blind, fixed-dose study, elderly institutionalized patients with dementia and agitation were randomized (3:3:2) to quetiapine 200mg/day, 100mg/day, or placebo.
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Average volumetric changes are close to the limit of detection by MRI methods.
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Quality of the reporting of trials varied.
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Faster alleviation of delirium and improved cognition justify good, comprehensive geriatric care for these patients although treatment produced no significant improvements in hard endpoints of prognosis.
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This study demonstrates robust evidence that complex patterns of mental activity in the early, mid- and late-life stages is associated with a significant reduction in dementia incidence.
Why it matters
This systematic review found that higher brain reserve, assessed through education, occupation, premorbid IQ and mental activities, was associated with a lowered risk for incident dementia, with increased complex mental activity in late life linked to lower dementia rates independent of other predictors. It reports an association only and no treatment or cure.
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Although significant treatment effects were not seen in the primary efficacy measures, outcomes on secondary measures suggest promising directions for further evaluation of donepezil treatment in patients with MCI.
Why it matters
In this 24-week trial of 270 patients with mild cognitive impairment, donepezil did not show significant treatment effects on the primary efficacy measures of the NYU Paragraph Delayed Recall test and the ADCS CGIC-MCI. Some secondary measures favored donepezil, and more donepezil-treated patients experienced adverse events, most of which were mild.
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74/100
Of 275 patients, 51 (18.5%) had persistent coma and died in the hospital.
Why it matters
In 275 ventilated ICU patients at one US hospital, 81.7% of those who could be assessed developed delirium, and they had higher 6-month mortality than those who did not (34% vs 15%) and stayed in hospital 10 days longer. The authors found delirium was an independent predictor of death and longer stay after adjusting for coma, sedatives and painkillers. This is an association in critically ill patients, not a test of any treatment, and it does not study Alzheimer's disease.
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Delirium (or acute confusional state) affects 35% to 65% of patients after hip-fracture repair, and has been independently associated with poor functional recovery.
Why it matters
This trial tested whether proactive geriatrics consultation can reduce delirium after hip fracture surgery. The text does not report whether the intervention actually reduced delirium, so no conclusion about its effect can be drawn from this record.
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At 6 months, galantamine significantly improved cognition and global function.
Why it matters
In this 6-month trial, galantamine significantly improved cognitive function and global function compared with placebo in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease, and cognitive and daily function were maintained for 12 months on the 24 mg/d dose. This is a symptomatic treatment for cognition and function, not a cure or prevention.
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Greater consumption of caffeinated coffee and tea was associated with lower risk of dementia and modestly better cognitive function, with the most pronounced association at moderate intake levels.
Why it matters
This cohort found that higher caffeinated coffee and tea intake was linked to lower dementia risk, while decaffeinated coffee was not. It is observational, so it cannot prove that coffee or tea prevents dementia.
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Midlife and late-life risk factors contributed to 22.7% and 16.5% of total dementia cases, respectively.
Why it matters
This US analysis estimated that midlife risk factors contributed to 22.7% and late-life risk factors to 16.5% of dementia cases, with midlife obesity, lower education and late-life physical inactivity the largest contributors. It highlights the need for interventions across the life course, but does not test whether such interventions reduce dementia.
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Pooled HRs indicated depression present in late-life (HR 1.95, 95% CI: 1.68–2.26; I 2 = 77.5%) and midlife (HR 1.56, 95% CI: 1.12–2.18; I 2 = 97.5%) significantly increased risk of all-cause dementia.
Why it matters
This umbrella review and meta-analysis found that depression in late-life and midlife significantly increased the risk of all-cause dementia. The authors note that substantial heterogeneity and review quality should be considered when interpreting the strength of this evidence.
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For music-based therapeutic interventions compared to usual care, we found moderate-certainty evidence that, at the end of treatment, music-based therapeutic interventions probably improved depressive symptoms slightly (standardised mean difference (SMD) -0.23, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.42 to -0.04; 9 studies, 441 participants), and we found low-certainty evidence that it may have improved overall behavioural problems (SMD -0.31, 95% CI -0.60 to -0.02; 10 studies, 385 participants).
Why it matters
This review found moderate-certainty evidence that music-based interventions probably slightly improved depressive symptoms and low-certainty evidence they may have improved overall behavioural problems. However, they likely did not improve agitation or aggression, and evidence showed they did not improve emotional well-being.
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The average life expectancy of people with dementia at time of diagnosis ranged from 5.7 years at age 65 to 2.2 at age 85 in men and from 8.0 to 4.5, respectively, in women.
Why it matters
This review of 261 studies describes how long people with dementia survive and when they enter nursing homes, with survival strongly depending on age at diagnosis. It provides prognostic information but does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
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This meta-analysis pooled 14 studies of the Mini-Cog, a 3-minute memory-and-clock-drawing test doctors can give in a routine visit, to see how well it catches dementia.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis pooled 14 studies of the Mini-Cog, a 3-minute memory-and-clock-drawing test, and found it correctly identified about three-quarters of people who truly had dementia and correctly cleared about 83% of those who didn't. Performance was similar in primary care and memory-clinic settings.
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The association between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and incident dementia remains inconclusive.
Why it matters
In this large UK Biobank cohort, having metabolic syndrome was associated with a higher risk of developing dementia over 15 years of follow-up. This identifies metabolic syndrome as a risk factor that could be targeted, but the study did not test whether treating it prevents dementia.
From across this topic
10 of the 7,967 studies in this topic, picked by a fixed rule (a hash of each study's address), not by score or date; each page of this list shows a different 10. The same 10 appear here every time.
- Would we rather lose our life than lose our self? Lessons from the Dutch debate on euthanasia for patients with dementia
- A reevaluation of the duration of survival after the onset of dementia
- The effects of psychosocial interventions on reducing hospitalisation in people with dementia: an umbrella review
- Enhancing the Quality of Life of Dementia Caregivers From Different Ethnic or Racial Groups: A Randomized, Controlled Trial
- Designing for those who are Overlooked - Investigating long-term Impacts of Social Robotics for People with Advanced Dementia, Caregivers and Relatives in a Secured Care Environment
- Dementia risk reduction in China: Country‐specific estimates of modifiable risk factors and population attributable fractions (PAFs)
- Dementia and delirium, the outcomes in elderly hip fracture patients
- The burden and risks of emerging complications of diabetes mellitus
- The utility of the Ascertain Dementia Eight-item Questionnaire (AD8) and Mini-Cog in detecting cognitive impairment in older surgical patients – The Detect CI study
- Experience and opinions on post-graduate dementia training in the UK: a survey of selected consultant geriatricians