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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ED screening tools in population-based studies are a major source of discrepancy.
Why it matters
This review found that men with erectile dysfunction were 1.68 times more likely to develop dementia than men without it, and that erectile dysfunction was associated with increasing age and cardiovascular disease. The authors note that differences in screening tools used across studies are a major source of discrepancy in prevalence estimates.
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51/100
Alzheimer's disease (AD) accounts for 60%-70% of all dementia cases, and clinical diagnosis at its early stage is extremely difficult.
Why it matters
This study used EEG signals and machine learning to tell apart people with Alzheimer's disease from healthy controls, reaching up to 99% accuracy on short eyes-open recordings. It is about classifying who has the disease, not about treating, curing or preventing it.
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Causal pathways corresponding to all 4 hypotheses were supported.
Why it matters
This longitudinal study of 1,029 people found that the links between decline in hearing speech in noise, thinking abilities, and aging are complex and most likely involve several different pathways. It is about understanding how hearing and thinking are related over time, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Brain imaging with diffusion-weighted MRI (dMRI) is sensitive to microstructural white matter (WM) changes associated with brain aging and neurodegeneration.
Why it matters
This analysis of 317 ADNI3 participants is about how diffusion MRI data are collected across different sites and scanners, not about a treatment or cure. It shows that researchers still need to work out when scans from different scanners can be combined and how the choice of scanning protocol affects the results.
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Quantifying gait and postural control adds valuable information that aids in understanding neurological conditions where motor symptoms predominate and cause considerable functional impairment.
Why it matters
This review discusses using devices to objectively measure gait and postural control, and big data approaches, to help diagnose, stratify, and track neurological conditions including dementia. It reports no treatment, cure, or prevention of Alzheimer's disease.
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51/100
Differences between predictors for dementia in younger old versus oldest old populations, as well as for dementia versus pathology, should be considered more carefully in future studies.
Why it matters
In the oldest old, machine learning models predicted dementia and some brain pathologies with only modest accuracy, and predictors differed from those in younger populations. It is a prediction study and reports no treatment or prevention.
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Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents a transitional stage between healthy aging and dementia, and affects 10-15% of the population over the age of 65.
Why it matters
This review describes MCI as a transitional stage between healthy aging and dementia, and notes that failure of drug trials in Alzheimer's disease treatment has shifted focus toward delaying progression from MCI to dementia. It reports that elevated tau can be identified in MCI, particularly in the entorhinal cortex, using positron emission tomography, and that there is an urgent need for standardized cognitive tests.
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The role of NPT has been largely explored in AD and dementia.
Why it matters
This review of non-pharmacological treatments for Alzheimer's disease and dementia states that supporting evidence for their use is still preliminary, and that while some studies showed statistically significant effects on some outcomes, the clinical significance is uncertain. It concludes that well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed.
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51/100
Caregiver characteristics and provision of caregiving tasks determine caregiver burden more than care recipient characteristics.
Why it matters
In 2011 US national survey data covering an estimated 14.9 million family and unpaid caregivers, more than half reported emotional, physical or financial burden. Burden was more likely among caregivers who helped with more daily activities, health management tasks and health system logistics, and among women, adult children, and caregivers in poor health or with anxiety symptoms. Dementia was the only care recipient characteristic linked to burden — an association from a single survey, not proof of cause.
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51/100
Racial disparities in dementia may be reduced by prevention and management of disease and promoting educational attainment among blacks and Hispanics.
Why it matters
This study found that disparities in dementia prevalence declined between blacks and whites but increased between Hispanics and whites, and that adjusting for risk factors reduced but did not eliminate these disparities. Untreated hypertension was associated with increased dementia risk for all racial and ethnic groups, while treated hypertension was associated with reduced risk for whites.
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Machine learning does not differentiate clinically relevant disease categories yet.
Why it matters
This review of 111 studies found that machine learning on brain scans was good at telling Alzheimer's disease apart from healthy aging, but poor at distinguishing healthy controls from mild cognitive impairment or predicting who would convert. The authors conclude that machine learning does not yet differentiate clinically relevant disease categories.
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Neurodegenerative diseases are a common cause of morbidity and cognitive impairment in older adults.
Why it matters
This review summarizes clinical aspects of several common neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, and notes that many clinicians who care for the elderly are not trained to diagnose these conditions. It stresses that accurate differentiation and diagnosis are important, but it reports no treatment, cure, or prevention findings.
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By 2050, the American 85 years old and over population will triple.
Why it matters
This review describes diseases and syndromes common in people aged 85 and over, including dementia, and recommends caregiver support, home services, assistive technologies, and home exercise programs. It does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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The increase in the prevalence of obesity represents a worldwide phenomenon in all age groups and is pathologically and genetically correlated with several metabolic and cardiovascular diseases, representing the most frequent age-related diseases.
Why it matters
This review discusses how obesity and aging increase chronic low-grade inflammation and how obesity plays a role in conditions including cognitive impairment and dementia. It is a review of inflammatory mechanisms, not a trial showing that any intervention prevents or treats Alzheimer's disease.
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Reduced f0 range reflects impaired prosody in bvFTD.
Why it matters
In 32 patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia, automated speech analysis found a reduced pitch range compared with healthy controls, linked to atrophy in frontal brain regions. This concerns frontotemporal dementia and speech measurement, not treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Cognitive decline leading to dementia represents a global health burden.
Why it matters
This paper suggests that reducing sedentary behavior and replacing it with intermittent light-intensity physical activity may protect against cognitive decline by reducing glycemic variability. It states that more research is needed to understand the impact of poor glycemic control on brain function and whether such practical interventions can help slow cognitive decline.
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Accumulating evidence points to the superiority of the MoCA over the MMSE as a cognitive screening tool.
Why it matters
This study tested whether MMSE-to-MoCA conversion tables work across different dementia subtypes. It is about comparing cognitive screening tools, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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51/100
Cognitive decline in older adults contributes to reduced ability to perform daily tasks and continued disuse leads to muscle weakness and potentiates functional loss.
Why it matters
This review of 15 prospective cohort studies found that reduced handgrip strength over time may serve as a predictor of cognitive loss with advancing age. The authors say the findings support the use of handgrip strength as a way to monitor cognitive changes.
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Higher arterial stiffness and pulsatility were associated with MCI and dementia in white participants.
Why it matters
Among white participants, higher arterial stiffness and pressure pulsatility were associated with mild cognitive impairment and dementia, with weaker associations among black participants. The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot show whether these factors predict or cause cognitive impairment.
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In 2012, the national prevalence of antipsychotic drug use was 20.7% for elderly patients with dementia, with a national incidence of 3.9%.
Why it matters
This study found that antipsychotic drug use in elderly patients with dementia varied more than four-fold between municipalities, suggesting differences in clinical practice in primary care. It calls for better education on managing neuropsychiatric symptoms, but it does not test a dementia treatment or cure.
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Ever since the brain was identified as an insulin-sensitive organ, evidence has rapidly accumulated that insulin action in the brain produces multiple behavioral and metabolic effects, influencing eating behavior, peripheral metabolism, and cognition.
Why it matters
This review discusses brain insulin resistance as a possible shared feature of metabolic and cognitive disorders and describes potential applications in treatment. It reports no tested treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Most inpatient users of VR described the experience as pleasant and capable of reducing pain and anxiety.
Why it matters
This small observational study found that most hospitalized patients who tried virtual reality reported a positive experience and thought it could improve pain and anxiety. People with dementia were excluded, and the study does not test any treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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From both commercial and Medicare Advantage perspectives, mirabegron was the most clinically effective treatment, while oxybutynin was the least expensive.
Why it matters
This study is about the cost-effectiveness of mirabegron for overactive bladder, not about Alzheimer's disease. It provides no information on treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) have been used in clinical practice in the United States for the last 4 to 6 years.
Why it matters
In patients on long-term anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation, use of direct oral anticoagulants was associated with a lower risk of new-onset dementia compared with warfarin. The study also found reduced risks of stroke/TIA and major bleeding with DOACs.
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Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is highly prevalent but very frequently undiagnosed.
Why it matters
This review links obstructive sleep apnea to depression and cognitive impairment through mechanisms such as reduced blood flow, blood-brain barrier problems and inflammation. It notes that treating sleep apnea with continuous positive airway pressure improves depression and cognitive function, but this is not evidence that it prevents or cures Alzheimer's disease.
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.
- Nursing home staff attitudes towards residents with dementia: strain and satisfaction with work
- Palliative Care in the Hip Fracture Patient
- The SINgapore GERiatric Intervention Study to Reduce Cognitive Decline and Physical Frailty (SINGER): Study Design and Protocol
- The Burden of Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia: An Integrative Review
- Impacts of Environmental Distractions and Interruptions on Unsupervised Digital Cognitive Assessments in Older Adults: Cognitive Ecological Momentary Assessment Study
- Mild cognitive impairment: a systematic review
- What do community-dwelling people with dementia need? A survey of those who are known to care and welfare services
- Long-term exposure to air pollution and risk of dementia among older individuals of a Danish nationwide administrative cohort
- Caregivers' male gender is associated with poor nutrient intake in AD families (NuAD-trial)
- Use of anticholinergics and the risk of cognitive impairment in an African American population