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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63/100
The study population consisted of 27 172 adults, including 4256 adults (14.0%) residing in rural areas, 14 741 (54.8%) in small or medium metropolitan areas, and 8175 (31.2%) in urban areas.
Why it matters
This cross-sectional study compares cardiovascular health between rural and urban US adults, not Alzheimer's disease. It found rural adults had higher rates of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity, diabetes and coronary heart disease, with the largest gaps among young adults.
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63/100
The sample included 3 329 977 beneficiaries (2 126 290 [63.9%] female, 33 887 [1.0%] Asian, 354 771 [10.7%] Black, 61 515 [1.8%] Hispanic, 2 831 391 [85.0%] White, and 891 815 [26.8%] dual eligible for Medicaid).
Why it matters
This study found that days of extreme heat were linked to a small increase in hospitalizations among older people with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, with effects lasting up to three days. It does not test a dementia treatment or prevention, so it cannot show how to cure or prevent dementia.
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The study sample included 1,375 participants free of dementia and stroke at baseline (mean age 68 ± 6y, 54 % females).
Why it matters
In this cohort, eating more ultra-processed food was linked to a higher risk of Alzheimer's disease in people under 68, but no significant link was found in those 68 or older. The authors say future clinical studies are needed to test whether cutting ultra-processed food actually improves brain health.
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Extensive evidence shows the beneficial effect of adhering to a regular physical activity (PA) pattern on brain health.
Why it matters
This UK Biobank study examined whether concentrating moderate-to-vigorous physical activity into one or two days a week, the 'weekend warrior' pattern, is linked to brain health. It is an observational study of activity patterns and does not prove that any activity pattern prevents dementia.
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Social determinants of health (SDHs) are the primary drivers of preventable health inequities, and the associations between SDHs and health outcomes among individuals with type 2 diabetes remain unclear.
Why it matters
This study estimated how social determinants of health relate to life expectancy and future health risks in people with type 2 diabetes. It concerns diabetes outcomes broadly and provides no information on treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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During this time, 414 individuals were diagnosed with incident all-cause dementia.
Why it matters
In 49,841 older adults followed for a mean of 6.72 years, accelerometer-assessed sedentary behavior showed a significant nonlinear association with incident dementia. This is an observational association and does not show that changing sedentary behavior prevents or treats dementia.
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This cohort study using pooled data from 6 cohort studies found that incident MI was not associated with a decrease in global cognition, memory, or executive function at the time of the event compared with no MI but was associated with faster declines in global cognition, memory, and executive function over time.
Why it matters
This study looked at whether having a heart attack was linked to changes in thinking and memory. It found that a heart attack was not linked to an immediate drop in cognition but was linked to faster decline over the years afterward, and it does not test any treatment or cure for Alzheimer's disease.
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However, not all plant-based foods are necessarily beneficial for dementia or depression.
Why it matters
This study examined whether overall plant-based diet quality is linked to dementia and depression in UK Biobank participants. It notes that not all plant-based foods are necessarily beneficial for dementia or depression.
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Of 3037 participants, a weighted 57.8% (raw count, 1345) were younger than 75 years, 56.2% (raw count, 1777) were women, and most (84.9% [raw count, 2268]) were White.
Why it matters
This study found that food insecurity was linked to faster decline in executive function but was not linked to changes in immediate or delayed memory. It suggests reducing food insecurity might affect one aspect of cognition, but it does not test a treatment or cure for Alzheimer's disease.
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All the included studies show evidence of an association between periodontitis and cognitive impairment or dementia and Alzheimer's disease pathology.
Why it matters
Across eleven observational studies, this review found that people with chronic gum disease (periodontitis) for at least eight years had a higher risk of cognitive decline and dementia, and that signs like gum inflammation and bone loss were associated with cognitive impairment. All included studies supported a link. However, how gum disease might lead to dementia is still unclear, so this shows an association rather than proof that treating gums prevents Alzheimer's.
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The present findings provide evidence of the benefits of NIBS, especially tDCS, for beneficial effect on cognition in patients with AD.
Why it matters
This network meta-analysis of 19 trials found that a specific combination of noninvasive brain stimulation was associated with a beneficial effect on cognition compared with sham in people with Alzheimer disease. It is about a symptomatic cognitive intervention, not a cure or prevention.
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The association between vascular risk factors and dementia varies with age, making generalizability of dementia risk prediction rules to individuals of different ages challenging.
Why it matters
This study used Framingham Heart Study participants to determine which vascular risk factors are most important for age-specific dementia risk scores across mid- to later life. It is observational, so it cannot show that treating these vascular risk factors would prevent dementia.
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Supervised intervention delivery is linked to greatest benefits.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis of digital health interventions found a moderate effect on cognitive abilities and a negative moderate effect on basic activities of daily living, with confidence intervals crossing zero. It addresses remote support interventions and does not report a cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Identifying independent and interactive associations of a wide range of diseases and multimorbidity and apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4) with dementia may help promote cognitive health.
Why it matters
This retrospective cohort study of 471,485 UK Biobank participants examined whether a wide range of chronic diseases, multimorbidity, and the APOE4 genotype are linked to later dementia risk. As an observational study, it cannot prove that preventing or treating these diseases would reduce dementia.
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Projected increases in cases could largely be attributed to population growth and population ageing, although their relative importance varied by world region, with population growth contributing most to the increases in sub-Saharan Africa and population ageing contributing most to the increases in east Asia.
Why it matters
This Global Burden of Disease analysis estimates how many people had dementia worldwide in 2019 and forecasts the number for 2050. It attributes the projected rise mainly to population growth and population ageing: growth contributed most in sub-Saharan Africa, and ageing contributed most in east Asia. The authors say the country-level estimates can inform national planning, and they call for scaling up interventions on modifiable risk factors alongside research on biological mechanisms. It is a projection of case numbers, not a test of any treatment.
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Frailty is strongly associated with dementia risk and affects the risk attributable to genetic factors.
Why it matters
High frailty was linked to a higher risk of dementia, independent of genetic risk, and frailty mediated part of the relationship between healthy lifestyle behaviours and dementia risk. Frailty should be considered an important modifiable risk factor for dementia.
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Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) in older adults has been identified as a risk factor for dementia, although the literature is inconsistent, and it is unclear which factors moderate progression from SCD to dementia.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis of 46 studies found that subjective cognitive decline was associated with increased risk of developing dementia and mild cognitive impairment. It identifies a risk marker but does not test any treatment or prevention.
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Depression is linked to an increased risk of cognitive decline and dementia; therefore, failing to diagnose and treat LLD in later life may have significant health implications.
Why it matters
This cross-sectional study in India found that older adults who were depressed had higher odds of cognitive impairment. It is observational and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Early diagnosis of cognitive disorders in older adults is a major healthcare priority with benefits to patients, families, and health systems.
Why it matters
This review of self-administered computerized cognitive tests found substantial variability in their quality and limited evidence on feasibility in real clinical settings. It is about assessment tools and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study results suggest that, after diagnosis, rural Medicare beneficiaries with ADRD spend more time in nursing homes and less time in the community, receive less home health care, and have shorter survival than their urban counterparts.
Why it matters
After diagnosis, rural Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer disease and related dementia spent more time in nursing homes and less time in the community, received less home health care, and had shorter survival than urban counterparts, with no statistically significant differences in home health or hospice use. This concerns care use and survival after diagnosis, not treatment, cure, or prevention.
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Despite improvements in diagnostic criteria for dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), the ability to discriminate DLB from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other dementias remains suboptimal.
Why it matters
This systematic review examined the role of EEG in diagnosing and prognosing dementia with Lewy bodies, finding that slowing of the dominant EEG rhythm was observed in about 90% of patients with dementia with Lewy bodies and only about 10% of patients with Alzheimer's disease. Other EEG findings were largely heterogeneous due to differences in study design and analysis.
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Anticholinergic burden (ACB), the cumulative effect of anticholinergic medications, is associated with adverse outcomes in older people but is less studied in middle-aged populations.
Why it matters
This longitudinal UK Biobank analysis of 502,538 participants examined how anticholinergic burden, measured with 10 common scales, relates to adverse outcomes. It is observational, so it cannot prove that reducing anticholinergic medications would prevent dementia.
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63/100
This is the first study to show that WM integrity is associated with frailty in older adults.
Why it matters
This study found that worse white matter integrity on diffusion tensor imaging was associated with worsening frailty over 5 years in older adults without dementia. It is about frailty and brain imaging, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer disease.
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An individual's brainAGE is the difference between chronological age and age predicted from machine-learning models of brain-imaging data.
Why it matters
In this birth cohort, individuals with older midlife brainAGE had poorer cognitive function in adulthood and childhood and an accelerated pace of biological aging and early signs of cognitive decline. The authors state these findings help validate brainAGE as a potential surrogate biomarker for midlife intervention studies, but no treatment, cure, or prevention was tested.
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Study objectives We investigated the effectiveness of a lighting intervention tailored to maximally affect the circadian system as a nonpharmacological therapy for treating problems with sleep, mood, and behavior in persons with Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD).
Why it matters
In this 14-week randomized crossover trial of 46 patients with Alzheimer disease and related dementias in long-term care, a tailored active lighting intervention significantly improved sleep quality scores and resulted in significant improvements in depression scores and greater active-versus-control differences in agitation scores. The intervention is a nonpharmacological therapy for sleep, mood, and behavior problems.
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.
- The Role of Phytochemicals in Age-Related Cognitive Decline: A Natural Solution for Brain Health
- The moderated mediation effect of caregiving stress and social support in the relationship between behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia and caregiver burden in Oman: a cross-sectional study
- Development and evaluation of a free e-learning program on dementia risk reduction for the general public: A pre-post study
- “It may cost you your money, it costs you your life”: a framework for financial hardship in dementia
- Using a collaborative approach to reduce falls in older people’s adult mental health wards in a local health board in Wales
- Cognitive Impairment in Parkinson's Disease: Epidemiology, Clinical Profile, Protective and Risk Factors
- Aripiprazole in the treatment of depressive and anxiety disorders: a review of current evidence
- Long-term health outcomes in a British cohort of breast, colorectal and prostate cancer survivors: a database study
- The lifetime risk of stroke: estimates from the Framingham Study
- Development and Validation of the End‐of‐Life Assessment Tool for Advanced Dementia: A Multi Method Study