Dementia trend shows later onset with fewer years of the disease

  • A large study shows that the falling rates of dementia reflect later onset coupled with shorter time spent with the dementia.

A large study using data from the famous Framingham Heart Study has compared changes in dementia onset over the last three decades. The study found that over time the age of onset has increased while the length of time spent with dementia has decreased.

The study involved 5,205 participants from the Framingham Original and Offspring cohorts. Four 5-year periods anchored to different baseline examinations (participants have been examined every four years) were compared. These baseline years are (on average, because participants’ schedules are different): 1978, 1989, 1996, 2006. Participants were those who were aged 60 or older and dementia-free at the start of a time period. There were at least 2000 participants in each time period. In total, there were 371 cases of dementia, and 43% of dementia cases survived more than 5 years after diagnosis.

It was found that the mean age of dementia onset increased by around two years per time period, while age at death increased by around one year. Length of survival after diagnosis decreased over time for everyone, taken as a whole, and also for each gender and education level, taken separately. Survival was almost 6 years in the first time period, and only three years in the last. But the mean age of onset was 80 in the first period, compared to over 86 in the last.

However, the changes haven’t been steady over the 30 years, but rather occurred mostly in those with dementia in 1986–1991 compared to 1977–1983.

Part of the reason for the changes is thought to be because of the reduced risk of stroke (largely because of better blood pressure management), and the better stroke treatments available. Stroke is a major risk factor for dementia. Other reasons might include lower burdens of multiple infections, better education, and better nutrition.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-04/uoth-dts042318.php

Reference: 

Related News

A clinical trial involving 9361 older adults (50+) with hypertension but without diabetes or history of stroke has found that intensive control of blood pressure significantly reduced the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment.

Survey data from 6,807 Danish older adults (average age 60) in the Copenhagen City Heart Study, has found that being distressed in late midlife is associated with a higher risk of dementia in later life.

Poor sleep has been associated with Alzheimer's disease risk, but a new study suggests a specific aspect of sleep is important.

Data from 1,215 older adults, of whom 173 (14%) were African-American, has found that, although brain scans showed no significant differences between black and white participants,

One important reason for the greater cognitive problems commonly experienced as we age, is our increasing difficulty in ignoring distracting and irrelevant information. But it may be that in some circumstances that propensity can be used to help memory.

A number of studies have found that physical exercise can help delay the onset of dementia, however the ability of exercise to slow the decline once dementia has set in is a more equivocal question. A large new study answers this question in the negative.

Do older adults forget as much as they think, or is it rather that they ‘misremember’?

A Finnish study involving over 1000 older adults suggests that a counselling program can prevent cognitive decline even among those with the Alzheimer’s gene.

A pilot study involving 106 participants of the Rush Memory and Aging Project who had experienced a stroke followed participants for an average of 5.9 years, testing their cognitive function and monitoring their eating habits using food journals.

A small Japanese study has found evidence that those with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) show a specific decline in their ability to recognize faces, and this is accompanied by changes in the way they scan faces.

Pages

Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news
Error | About memory

Error

The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.