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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58/100
Research on the relation between diabetes mellitus and dementia has produced conflicting results, and the relation has not been investigated among Blacks and Hispanics.
Why it matters
In 1,262 older adults without dementia, followed for an average of 4.3 years, people with diabetes had about 3.4 times the risk of dementia associated with stroke (95% CI 1.7–6.9) and a 1.6-fold risk of Alzheimer's disease or milder cognitive impairment combined, but no clear increase in Alzheimer's disease alone (1.3, CI 0.8–1.9). The authors estimated that about a third of stroke-associated dementia risk among Black and Hispanic participants was "attributable to diabetes", compared with 17% among White participants. This is an observational study: it shows an association and tests no treatment.
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The sensitivity of MRI volumetric measures to detect cognitive dysfunction is examined in 39 participants of an epidemiological field study (age 75-85, MMSE 19-30).
Why it matters
In 39 elderly participants, hippocampal volume measures correctly classified 76.9% of subjects across normal cognition, questionable dementia and mild dementia. This concerns using MRI to detect cognitive dysfunction and does not address treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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The DRS-R-98, a 16-item clinician-rated scale with 13 severity items and 3 diagnostic items, was validated against the Cognitive Test for Delirium (CTD), Clinical Global Impression scale (CGI), and Delirium Rating Scale (DRS) among five diagnostic groups (N=68): delirium, dementia, depression, schizophrenia, and other.
Why it matters
This study validated the Delirium Rating Scale-revised-98, finding that its scores distinguished delirium from other groups including dementia and that it is a useful diagnostic and assessment tool. It concerns assessment of delirium and reports nothing about treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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There is a growing literature on the importance of hippocampal volume in geriatric depression.
Why it matters
This study measured hippocampal volume in 66 elderly depressed patients and 18 elderly nondepressed controls using brain MRI scans. It concerns geriatric depression, not Alzheimer's disease, and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's.
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Dementia and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) are highly prevalent disorders in the elderly.
Why it matters
In this population-based study, diabetes was positively associated with dementia, with the strongest association for vascular dementia but an association also observed with Alzheimer's disease. It reports an association only and does not show that treating diabetes prevents or cures dementia.
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Although many studies have found a cross-sectional relation between depression and dementia or depressive symptomatology and cognitive functioning, the direction of the association is still unknown.
Why it matters
This community-based cohort study followed 1600 nondemented people aged 65 and over for 3 years to see whether high depressive symptoms predicted later cognitive deterioration. It examines a possible risk factor or early sign and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
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58/100
Study objective To describe a population that was categorized as "cognitively impaired not demented" (CIND) and to examine the utility of some of the proposed criteria for describing this degree of cognitive impairment.
Why it matters
This population-based prevalence study described people categorized as cognitively impaired not demented and examined proposed criteria for this degree of cognitive impairment. It is descriptive research and does not test a treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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We developed a new instrument, the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), to assess 10 behavioral disturbances occurring in dementia patients: delusions, hallucinations, dysphoria, anxiety, agitation/aggression, euphoria, disinhibition, irritability/lability, apathy, and aberrant motor activity.
Why it matters
The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) is a questionnaire, answered by "a caregiver familiar with the patient's behavior", that rates how often and how severely a person with dementia shows 10 behaviours, including delusions, hallucinations, agitation/aggression, depression (dysphoria), anxiety and apathy. Screening questions skip the behaviours that are not present, to keep it short. The authors report it was valid and reliable, though this record gives no figures, and it is a way of measuring symptoms, not a treatment.
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In this real-life crossover study, THC/CBD oil did not show superiority over placebo in reducing agitation in severe dementia.
Why it matters
In this small trial of 25 patients with severe dementia, a THC/CBD oil did not work better than placebo for agitation or other main behavioural outcomes. The treatment was well tolerated and was linked to less use of as-needed psychotropic medication, but the trial was small and the main outcomes were negative.
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On average, participants were aged 63 years and had 16 years of education.
Why it matters
In women with breast cancer, greater neighborhood disadvantage was associated with poorer verbal memory, working memory, mental flexibility, and processing speed before treatment. After adjusting for education, depressive symptoms, age, and body mass index, most of these associations were weakened, though working memory remained linked to the Area Deprivation Index.
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57/100
Poor oral health and genetic susceptibility have each been linked to dementia risk, but their joint effects and subtype-specific associations remain unclear.
Why it matters
In this UK Biobank cohort, painful gums, denture use and toothache were each linked to higher dementia risk, and risk rose with the number of oral conditions. The authors suggest poor oral health was independently linked to dementia, but the study does not test whether dental treatment prevents it.
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UNDERLYING BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS PNDs result from a complex interplay of multiple biological, genetic, and environmental factors (Table 1).
Why it matters
This review discusses sex-based differences in perioperative brain health outcomes and notes that when sex is examined, results are frequently inconsistent or null. It does not test or demonstrate any treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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People with severe mental illnesses (SMIs), including schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), major depressive disorder (MDD), and bipolar disorder (BD), experience elevated rates of physical comorbidity and premature mortality.
Why it matters
In this population, people with a lifetime severe mental illness diagnosis had higher odds of dementia across all age groups, with the strongest link at younger ages. The authors say this points to the need for earlier and more systematic neurological and cardiometabolic screening within psychiatric care.
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Self- and informant-reported ADL and IADL impairments were examined at overall and item levels.
Why it matters
Informant-reported, but not self-reported, functional impairments were associated with poorer cognition and higher dementia risk. This may help identify people at risk, but it does not offer a treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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The human metabolome reflects complex metabolic states affected by genetic and environmental factors.
Why it matters
This study is about blood metabolites and type 2 diabetes risk, not Alzheimer's disease, so it offers no information on Alzheimer's treatment, cure or prevention. It identified many metabolites linked to future type 2 diabetes and a metabolite signature that improved risk prediction.
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Future studies should prioritize short-term interventions and develop integrated approaches combining individual and group formats.
Why it matters
Across 16 studies of 750 family caregivers, digital psychological interventions reduced caregiver burden and improved self-efficacy and quality of life. These programs target the strain of caregiving rather than the disease itself, and the authors suggest future work should focus on short-term interventions.
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In a meta-analysis of 2 one-sample MR studies, the odds ratio (OR) for 1-SD higher BMI in predicting vascular-related dementia was 1.63 (95% CI, 1.13-2.35).
Why it matters
This Mendelian randomization study found that higher body mass index was associated with a higher risk of vascular-related dementia, partly mediated through high blood pressure. The authors conclude that high BMI and high blood pressure are important modifiable risk factors for dementia prevention.
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1,318 unique titles and abstracts were screened, of which 20 articles met inclusion criteria.
Why it matters
This umbrella review found limited and inconsistent evidence that specific psychosocial interventions reduce hospitalization in people with dementia. It reports preliminary results and does not identify an effective treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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DSD is linked to adverse outcomes, compared to dementia alone, like longer hospitalisation [3], mortality [3, 4], functional decline [3] and need for residential care [3].
Why it matters
This review describes delirium superimposed on dementia as linked to worse outcomes such as longer hospitalization and mortality, and notes that dementia pathology and neurotransmitter imbalances are likely predisposing risks. It emphasizes that good dementia care and delirium prevention overlap, and that delirium assessment is a priority in a person with dementia who has deteriorated.
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The introduction of incretin mimetics (IMs), including glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) such as liraglutide and semaglutide, as well as dual GLP-1/glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor co-agonists (GLP-1/GIP RAs) like tirzepatide, has revolutionized obesity treatment.
Why it matters
This review is about obesity management with incretin mimetics combined with lifestyle, diet, and exercise interventions, and it contains no information on Alzheimer's disease. It reports that these medications promote weight loss and metabolic and cardiovascular improvements, but says nothing about dementia.
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There were 13,145 individuals with risk factor data between 2015 and 2018 (51.1% aged 18-44, 31.0% aged 45-64, and 17.9% aged ≥65 years; 51.5% female after survey-weighting).
Why it matters
This US study found that lower income and historically underrepresented race-ethnicity groups were linked to more dementia risk factors, with late-life vision loss the largest contributor among those below the poverty level. It suggests dementia prevention efforts may work better if targeted at these higher-risk populations.
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57/100
Ninety-one reviews provided evidence on the impact of telemedicine in dementia care.
Why it matters
Across 91 reviews, telemedicine and telehealth were most often reported to help with depression, anxiety, satisfaction, quality of life, and social isolation for people with dementia and their caregivers. However, most of the included reviews were rated low or critically low in methodological quality, so these findings should be treated with caution.
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CRS is associated with 9% poorer global cognitive function, while CRS treatment is associated with 8-9% improvements in processing speed and working memory.
Why it matters
Pooling 10 studies with 107,610 patients, this review found chronic rhinosinusitis, long-lasting sinus inflammation, was associated with 9% poorer global cognitive function, and treating it was associated with 8-9% improvements in processing speed and working memory. There was no significant link between the condition and dementia in cross-sectional data. The authors say larger long-term studies are needed to clarify these relationships.
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Evidence links air pollution to dementia, yet its role in Lewy body dementia (LBD) remains unclear.
Why it matters
In a large US cohort, fine particulate matter exposure was linked to higher Lewy body dementia risk, and in mice this exposure caused brain atrophy that did not occur in α-synuclein–deficient mice. The authors stress the need for interventions to reduce air pollution and its associated neurological disease burden.
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Here we show that the associations of 57 metabolites with dementia risk varied by APOE4 genotype or other AD/ADRD risk variants.
Why it matters
In these prospective cohorts, the links between 57 metabolites and dementia risk differed by APOE4 genotype, and Mediterranean diet adherence modulated dementia-related metabolites more effectively in APOE4 homozygotes. The authors say this supports precision nutrition approaches for dementia prevention, though the metabolomic data only modestly improved risk prediction.
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.
- Evaluation and management of the elderly patient presenting with cognitive complaints
- Psychosocial Pathways to Racial/Ethnic Inequalities in Late-Life Memory Trajectories
- Association between Periodontal Disease and Cognitive Impairment in Adults
- Extent and distribution of white matter hyperintensities in normal aging, MCI, and AD
- How predictive is the MMSE for cognitive performance after stroke?
- Is physical activity a potential preventive factor for vascular dementia? A systematic review
- Dementia Dialogue: An Educational Workshop for Medical Students
- Neuropsychological Measures that Predict Progression from Mild Cognitive Impairment to Alzheimer's type dementia in Older Adults: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
- Gains in cognition through combined cognitive and physical training: the role of training dosage and severity of neurocognitive disorder
- 299. SENSORS IN-HOME FOR ELDER WELLBEING (SINEW): DIGITAL PHENOTYPING AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR EARLY DETECTION OF DEMENTIA