Increases in Neuroticism May Be an Early Indicator of Dementia: A Coordinated Analysis

Abstract Objectives Although personality change is typically considered a symptom of dementia, some studies suggest that personality change may be an early indication of dementia. One prospective study found increases in neuroticism preceding dementia diagnosis (Yoneda, T., Rush, J., Berg, A. I., Johansson, B., & Piccinin, A. M. (2017). Trajectories of personality traits preceding dementia diagnosis. The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 72, 922–931. doi:10.1093/geronb/gbw006). This study extends this research by examining trajectories of personality traits in additional longitudinal studies of aging. Methods Three independent series of latent growth curve models were fitted to data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam and Einstein Aging Study to estimate trajectories of personality traits in individuals with incident dementia diagnosis (total N = 210), in individuals with incident Mild Cognitive Impairment (N = 135), and in individuals who did not receive a diagnosis during follow-up periods (total N = 1740). Results Controlling for sex, age, education, depressive symptoms, and the interaction between age and education, growth curve analyses consistently revealed significant linear increases in neuroticism preceding dementia diagnosis in both datasets and in individuals with mild cognitive impairment. Analyses examining individuals without a diagnosis revealed nonsignificant change in neuroticism overtime. Discussion Replication of our previous work in 2 additional datasets provides compelling evidence that increases in neuroticism may be early indication of dementia, which can facilitate development of screening assessments.

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Joint Effect of ABCA7 rs4147929 and Body Mass Index on Progression from Mild Cognitive Impairment to Alzheimer’s Disease: The Shanghai Aging Study

Current Alzheimer Research ◽

10.2174/1567205017666200317095608 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 185-195

Author(s):

Jianxiong Xi ◽

Ding Ding ◽

Qianhua Zhao ◽

Xiaoniu Liang ◽

Li Zheng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Body Mass Index ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Body Mass ◽

Joint Effect ◽

Genome Wide Association Studies ◽

Risk Genotype ◽

Aging Study

Background: Approximately 40 independent Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) have been associated with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) or cognitive decline in genome-wide association studies. Methods: We aimed to evaluate the joint effect of genetic polymorphisms and environmental factors on the progression from Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) to AD (MCI-AD progression) in a Chinese community cohort. Conclusion: Demographic, DNA and incident AD diagnosis data were derived from the follow-up of 316 participants with MCI at baseline of the Shanghai Aging Study. The associations of 40 SNPs and environmental predictors with MCI-AD progression were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test and Cox regression model. Results: Rs4147929 at ATP-binding cassette family A member 7 (ABCA7) (AG/AA vs. GG, hazard ratio [HR] = 2.43, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.24-4.76) and body mass index (BMI) (overweight vs. non-overweight, HR = 0.41, 95% CI 0.22-0.78) were independent predictors of MCI-AD progression. In the combined analyses, MCI participants with the copresence of non-overweight BMI and the ABCA7 rs4147929 (AG/AA) risk genotype had an approximately 6-fold higher risk of MCI-AD progression than those with an overweight BMI and a non-risk genotype (HR = 6.77, 95% CI 2.60-17.63). However, a nonsignificant result was found when participants carried only one of these two risk factors (nonoverweight BMI and AG/AA of ABCA7 rs4147929). Conclusion: ABCA7 rs4147929 and BMI jointly affect MCI-AD progression. MCI participants with the rs4147929 risk genotype may benefit from maintaining an overweight BMI level with regard to their risk for incident AD.

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Prevalence and Risk of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Low and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review

Journal of Alzheimer s Disease ◽

10.3233/jad-201043 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-20

Author(s):

Andrea M. McGrattan ◽

Yueping Zhu ◽

Connor D. Richardson ◽

Devi Mohan ◽

Yee Chang Soh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Resource Planning ◽

Cognitive State ◽

Middle Income ◽

Total N ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Low And Middle Income

Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a cognitive state associated with increased risk of dementia. Little research on MCI exists from low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), despite high prevalence of dementia in these settings. Objective: This systematic review aimed to review epidemiological reports to determine the prevalence of MCI and its associated risk factors in LMICs. Methods: Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched from inception until November 2019. Eligible articles reported on MCI in population or community-based studies from LMICs. No restrictions on the definition of MCI used as long as it was clearly defined. Results: 4,621 articles were screened, and 78 retained. In total, n = 23 different LMICs were represented; mostly from China (n = 55 studies). Few studies from countries defined as lower-middle income (n = 14), low income (n = 4), or from population representative samples (n = 4). There was large heterogeneity in how MCI was diagnosed; with Petersen criteria the most commonly applied (n = 26). Prevalence of aMCI (Petersen criteria) ranged from 0.6%to 22.3%. Similar variability existed across studies using the International Working Group Criteria for aMCI (range 4.5%to 18.3%) and all-MCI (range 6.1%to 30.4%). Risk of MCI was associated with demographic (e.g., age), health (e.g., cardio-metabolic disease), and lifestyle (e.g., social isolation, smoking, diet and physical activity) factors. Conclusion: Outside of China, few MCI studies have been conducted in LMIC settings. There is an urgent need for population representative epidemiological studies to determine MCI prevalence in LMICs. MCI diagnostic methodology also needs to be standardized. This will allow for cross-study comparison and future resource planning.

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Prevalence of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Mexican Older Adults: Data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS)

10.1101/2020.01.03.20016345 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Miguel Arce Rentería ◽

Jennifer J. Manly ◽

Jet M. J. Vonk ◽

Silvia Mejia Arango ◽

Alejandra Michaels Obregon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Memory Impairment ◽

Older Age ◽

Mexican Population ◽

Prevalence Rates ◽

Amnestic Mci ◽

Low Education ◽

Health Factors ◽

Aging Study

ABSTRACTINTRODUCTIONWe estimated the prevalence and risk factors for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and its subtypes in Mexican population using the cognitive aging ancillary study of the Mexican Health and Aging Study.METHODSUsing a robust norms approach and comprehensive neuropsychological criteria, we determined MCI in a sample of adult Mexicans (N=1,807;55-97years). Additionally, we determined prevalence rates using traditional criteria.RESULTSPrevalence of amnestic MCI was 5.9%. Other MCI subtypes ranged 4.3% to 7.7%. MCI with and without memory impairment was associated with older age and rurality. Depression, diabetes and low educational attainment were associated with MCI without memory impairment. Using traditional criteria, prevalence of MCI was lower (2.2% amnestic MCI, other subtypes ranged 1.3%-2.4%).DISCUSSIONOlder age, depression, low education, diabetes, and rurality were associated with increased risk of MCI among older adults in Mexico. Our findings suggest that the causes of cognitive impairment are likely multifactorial and may vary by MCI subtype.Research in ContextSystematic reviewWe reviewed the literature using Google Scholar and PubMed. Few studies have reported prevalence rates for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Mexican population. These studies have primarily relied on limited cognitive assessments, and diverse MCI criteria. Evaluating the prevalence of MCI with a robust neuropsychological approach can help understand the rates and risk factors associated with MCI across a large and representative sample of the aging Mexican population.InterpretationVarious sociodemographic and health factors such as older age, depression, low education, diabetes, and rurality were significant correlates of MCI and differed by MCI subtype.Future directionsLongitudinal studies will be needed to evaluate the diagnostic stability of MCI over time, and its association with incident dementia. Future work will evaluate the casual path of these sociodemographic and health factors on cognitive impairment to develop effective interventions.

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