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 prevalence of comorbid conditions in people with dementia is high.
Why it matters
This review found that many people with dementia also have other medical conditions, and there is some evidence they may have poorer access to services, though the reasons are unclear. It shows that how care is organised for people with dementia and other conditions is not well understood and needs more research.
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Midlife hypertension and elevated midlife but not late-life systolic BP was associated with more cognitive decline during the 20 years of the study.
Why it matters
This study found that midlife hypertension and elevated midlife systolic blood pressure were associated with more cognitive decline over 20 years, while late-life systolic blood pressure was not. It identifies midlife blood pressure as a possible target for prevention research but does not test any treatment.
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This issue of Medical Care includes a theoretical framework for conducting research on MCC, a review of existing MCC research methods and methodological gaps to be addressed, and the results of several research studies addressing MCC.
Why it matters
This issue of Medical Care includes a theoretical framework for research on multiple chronic conditions and results of several studies addressing MCC. It notes that patients with the most common combinations of conditions are not the most costly, and that cancer screening and quality measures for single disease were generally lower among persons with MCC who also had mental illness.
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These findings suggest that depressive symptoms precede memory decline, but not vice versa, in late life.
Why it matters
In this longitudinal study of older adults without dementia, initial depressive symptoms predicted worse memory and faster memory decline, but memory did not predict later depressive symptoms. The authors say this is consistent with depression being an early sign of dementia or a contributor to memory decline, but it does not test a treatment or cure.
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We compared two methods of diagnosing mild cognitive impairment (MCI): conventional Petersen/Winblad criteria as operationalized by the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) and an actuarial neuropsychological method put forward by Jak and Bondi designed to balance sensitivity and reliability. 1,150 ADNI participants were diagnosed at baseline as cognitively normal (CN) or MCI via ADNI criteria (MCI: n = 846; CN: n = 304) or Jak/Bondi criteria (MCI: n = 401; CN: n = 749), and the two MCI samples were submitted to cluster and discriminant function analyses.
Why it matters
Using neuropsychological criteria for mild cognitive impairment produced more stable diagnoses, significant cerebrospinal fluid Alzheimer's disease biomarker associations and identified more participants who progressed to dementia than conventional criteria. This is a diagnostic comparison and reports no treatment, cure or prevention.
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Smoking and education, which have opposing risk effects on AD and PD, are not risk factors for DLB; however, depression and low caffeine intake, both risk factors for AD and PD, increase risk of DLB more strongly than in either.
Why it matters
In this case-control study, people with dementia with Lewy bodies were more likely to have a history of anxiety, and the authors concluded that DLB risk factors are an amalgam of those for Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. This concerns risk factors for dementia with Lewy bodies and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Although dementia praecox or schizophrenia has been considered a unique disease for over a century, its definitions and boundaries have changed over this period and its etiology and pathophysiology remain elusive.
Why it matters
This paper describes changes to the definition of schizophrenia in DSM-5, including elimination of classic subtypes and clarification of boundaries with schizoaffective disorder. It does not test any treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Behavioral symptoms such as repetitive speech, wandering, and sleep disturbances are a core clinical feature of Alzheimer disease and related dementias.
Why it matters
Nonpharmacologic treatments are recommended as first-line for behavioral symptoms because available drugs are only modestly effective and carry notable risks. These approaches can significantly improve quality of life and patient-caregiver satisfaction.
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Incidence rates for MCI are higher than previously reported, particularly in men and for single-domain MCI; rates for amnestic and nonamnestic MCI were comparable.
Why it matters
Among 873 community-dwelling adults aged 70–90 in Sydney, only 4.8% of those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) developed dementia within 2 years, while 28.2% returned to normal cognition. Progression was highest for multidomain amnestic MCI (9.1%). The study also found that how strictly "impairment" is defined matters a great deal: a stricter threshold cut MCI prevalence from 36.7% to 5.7% but raised 2-year progression to 14.3%. An MCI label, especially single-domain MCI, is often unstable, and its meaning depends on the criteria used.
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MBSR was more effective at improving overall mental health, reducing stress, and decreasing depression than CCES.
Why it matters
In a randomized trial of 78 family caregivers of people with dementia, an 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction course improved overall mental health, stress and depression more than a time-matched caregiver education and support program; both programs helped, and they were similarly effective for anxiety, burden and social support. Participants were mostly non-Hispanic White women caring for a parent, so results may not carry over to other caregivers. The study measured caregiver wellbeing only, not any effect on the person with Alzheimer's or dementia.
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In general, the MoCA-BJ is an acceptable tool for MCI screening in both urban and rural regions of Beijing.
Why it matters
This study evaluated the Beijing version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment as a screening tool for mild cognitive impairment. It concerns screening and diagnosis, not the treatment, cure or prevention of Alzheimer's disease.
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We investigated the associations between retinopathy and dementia and its subtypes Alzheimer disease (AD) and vascular dementia both cross-sectionally and prospectively in the Rotterdam Study, a large population-based cohort study.
Why it matters
This Rotterdam Study investigated whether retinopathy is related to dementia and its subtypes, Alzheimer disease and vascular dementia, both cross-sectionally and prospectively. It is an observational study, so it cannot show that treating retinopathy prevents or treats dementia.
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This study robustly characterized the prevalence of sleep complaints in large samples of the elderly in LAMICs and identified potential risk factors that may be specific to these populations.
Why it matters
This study estimated the prevalence of sleep complaints in older adults across low and middle income countries and found several factors associated with them, including memory impairment and mild cognitive impairment. It does not test any treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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58/100
Accurate prediction of clinical changes of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients, including both qualitative change (i.e., conversion to Alzheimer's disease (AD)) and quantitative change (i.e., cognitive scores) at future time points, is important for early diagnosis of AD and for monitoring the disease progression.
Why it matters
This study developed a method using imaging and other data over time to predict future cognitive changes and conversion to Alzheimer's disease in people with MCI. It is a prediction tool for early diagnosis and monitoring, not a treatment or prevention.
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Mild cognitive impairment is common in nondemented Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and may be a harbinger of dementia.
Why it matters
This task force proposed diagnostic criteria for mild cognitive impairment in Parkinson's disease, based on a literature review and expert consensus, to characterize the clinical syndrome and methods for its diagnosis. The criteria are intended to support future research to identify at the earliest stage those PD patients at increased risk of progressive cognitive decline and dementia who may benefit from clinical interventions at a predementia stage.
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Cerebral microbleeds are frequently found in the general elderly population and may reflect underlying vascular disease, but their role in cognitive function is unknown.
Why it matters
This study investigated the association between cerebral microbleeds and performance in multiple cognitive domains in persons without dementia. It is an observational study of a possible vascular marker and cognition, not a treatment, cure, or prevention study.
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This relationship was evident even after accounting for degree of memory deficit across the continuum of cognitive impairment and dementia.
Why it matters
In 793 people across normal aging, mild cognitive impairment, and mild Alzheimer's disease, this study found executive dysfunction was strongly related to impairment in instrumental activities of daily living. It concerns understanding functional decline, not treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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58/100
The prevalence of stroke in urban LA and Chinese sites is nearly as high as in industrialised countries.
Why it matters
This survey in Latin America, China and India found self-reported stroke prevalence of 6-9% in most Latin American sites and urban China, but much lower in urban and rural India and rural China and Peru. Comorbid dementia and depression were the main factors linked to disability and dependence after stroke.
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Primary outcomes using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses showed that all 3 mental status tests produced excellent discrimination of PD-D from patients without dementia (area under the curve [AUC], 87%-91%) and PD-MCI from PD-N patients (AUC, 78%-90%), but the MoCA was generally better suited across both assessments.
Why it matters
This study found that the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a brief screening test, accurately screened for cognitive impairment at all levels in Parkinson's disease. It concerns diagnosis and screening only and reports nothing about treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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58/100
Of 230 patients, 211 (92%) died during the study period.
Why it matters
In this Parkinson disease cohort, dementia was among the factors included as time-dependent variables, but the study's main focus was on identifying predictors of mortality. It found no significant impact of antipsychotic or antiparkinsonian drugs on survival.
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The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is insensitive to mild cognitive impairment and executive function.
Why it matters
In patients who had a transient ischemic attack or stroke, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment detected substantially more cognitive abnormalities than the Mini-Mental State Examination, including deficits in executive function, attention, and delayed recall. This suggests the choice of cognitive screening tool affects how often cognitive problems are found in this group.
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Among caregivers, this small randomized controlled trial found that escitalopram use resulted in improvement in depression, resilience, burden and distress, and quality of life.
Why it matters
In this small trial of 40 family caregivers of people with Alzheimer's disease, escitalopram improved depression, resilience, burden, and distress compared with placebo. This treats caregiver depression, not Alzheimer's disease itself, and the authors say results need confirmation in a larger sample.
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Follow-up occurred during a mean period of 6.8 +/- 3.4 years, and subjects had a mean of 2.9 +/- 1.6 follow-up visits.
Why it matters
Among 213 cognitively normal, well-educated adults followed for an average of 6.8 years at a brain-aging research center, 54.2% of those with subjective memory complaints (90 people) declined to mild cognitive impairment or dementia, compared with 14.9% of those without complaints (7 people). The authors call subjective cognitive impairment "a harbinger of further decline in most subjects", but this was a specialist-clinic group, and they note that relevance to community populations still needs to be investigated.
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The review demonstrates accumulating evidence supporting health behavioral effects in reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.
Why it matters
This systematic review found that leisure time physical activity, even at moderate levels, showed protective effects against dementia, while smoking elevated the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Moderate alcohol consumption tended to be protective, but both nondrinkers and frequent drinkers had higher risk, and midlife obesity had an adverse effect on later cognitive function.
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In these older adults, associations of risk factors with a given cause of death were related to specific deficits in that same organ system.
Why it matters
In this cohort, apolipoprotein E epsilon4 was strongly associated with dementia death, and age, male sex, markers of inflammation, and cognitive function were related to multiple causes of death. These are risk factor associations with mortality, not findings about treating, curing, or preventing 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.
- Primary care and dementia: 2. Long-term care at home: psychosocial interventions, information provision, carer support and case management
- Impact of sleep duration on executive function and brain structure
- Reduced mortality in treating acutely sick, frail older patients in a geriatric evaluation and management unit. A prospective randomized trial
- Artificial intelligence for diagnostic and prognostic neuroimaging in dementia: A systematic review
- Dermatological Problems and Treatment in Long-Term/Nursing-Home Care
- Designing ICTs for Users with Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Usability Study
- Impact of herpes zoster vaccination on incident dementia: A retrospective study in two patient cohorts
- Sugar- and Artificially Sweetened Beverages and the Risks of Incident Stroke and Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study
- Impact of cognitive impairment on driving behaviour and route choices of older drivers: a real-world driving study
- Vitamin D and cognitive performance in adults: a systematic review