@article {723, title = {Evaluation of dementia in the cardiovascular health cognition study.}, journal = {Neuroepidemiology}, volume = {22}, year = {2003}, month = {2003 Jan-Feb}, pages = {1-12}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: To describe a methodology to evaluate dementia and frequency of different types of dementia and prevalence of the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS).

METHODS: The CHS is a longitudinal study of cardiovascular disease among community-dwelling individuals over the age of 65. Of the 5,888 participants in the original study, 3,608 had a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain in 1991, and formed the cohort for the dementia study. The CHS included yearly measures of cognitive function and, from 1998 to 2000, participants were evaluated for dementia by detailed neurological, and neuropsychological examinations. The possible cases of dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were adjudicated by a review committee of neurologists and psychiatrists.

RESULTS: There were 480 cases of (13.3\%) incident dementia in the total sample, 227 (6.3\%) prevalent dementia, 577 (16.0\%) MCI, and 2,318 (64.4\%) normal. The adjudication committee classified 69\% of the incident dementia as Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease (AD), 11\% as vascular dementia (VaD), 16\% as both, and 4\% as other types. There was a substantial agreement between pre- and postMRI diagnosis of types of dementia. The frequency of dementia within the CHS cohort which survived to the end of the study in 1998-1999, was 13.5\% for white men, 14.5\% for white women, 22.2\% for black men and 23.4\% for black women.

CONCLUSION: The CHS has developed a methodology for longitudinal studies of dementia in large cohorts and represents the largest study of dementia including cognitive testing, MRI and genetic markers.

}, keywords = {Age Distribution, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Cardiovascular Diseases, Cognition Disorders, Cohort Studies, Cross-Sectional Studies, Dementia, Female, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Prevalence, Risk Factors, Sex Distribution}, issn = {0251-5350}, doi = {10.1159/000067110}, author = {Lopez, Oscar L and Kuller, Lewis H and Fitzpatrick, Annette and Ives, Diane and Becker, James T and Beauchamp, Norman} } @article {1009, title = {Enhanced risk for Alzheimer disease in persons with type 2 diabetes and APOE epsilon4: the Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Study.}, journal = {Arch Neurol}, volume = {65}, year = {2008}, month = {2008 Jan}, pages = {89-93}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Diabetes and the apolipoprotein E epsilon4 allele (APOE epsilon4) increase the risk for Alzheimer disease (AD). We hypothesize that APOE epsilon4 may modify the risk for AD in individuals with diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the joint effect of type 2 diabetes and APOE epsilon4 on the risk of AD, AD with vascular dementia (mixed AD), and vascular dementia without AD.

DESIGN: The Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) Cognition Study (1992-2000) is a prospective study designed to identify all existing and new cases of dementia among study participants. Diagnoses were made according to international criteria for dementia and subtypes. There were 2547 dementia-free participants in the CHS Cognition Study cohort with complete information on APOE epsilon4 and type 2 diabetes status; among these, 411 new cases of dementia developed. Risk of dementia was estimated with a Cox proportional hazard model adjusted for age and other demographic and cardiovascular risk factors.

RESULTS: Compared with those who had neither type 2 diabetes nor APOE epsilon4, those with both factors had a significantly higher risk of AD (hazard ratio, 4.58; 95\% confidence interval, 2.18-9.65) and mixed AD (hazard ratio, 3.89; 95\% confidence interval, 1.46-10.40).

CONCLUSION: These data suggest that having both diabetes and APOE epsilon4 increases the risk of dementia, especially for AD and mixed AD.

}, keywords = {African Americans, Age Factors, Aged, Alzheimer Disease, Apolipoprotein E4, Cognition, Cohort Studies, Confidence Intervals, Dementia, Vascular, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, European Continental Ancestry Group, Female, Genotype, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Proportional Hazards Models, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Sex Factors}, issn = {0003-9942}, doi = {10.1001/archneurol.2007.29}, author = {Irie, Fumiko and Fitzpatrick, Annette L and Lopez, Oscar L and Kuller, Lewis H and Peila, Rita and Newman, Anne B and Launer, Lenore J} } @article {1225, title = {The effects of physical activity, education, and body mass index on the aging brain.}, journal = {Hum Brain Mapp}, volume = {32}, year = {2011}, month = {2011 Sep}, pages = {1371-82}, abstract = {

Normal human aging is accompanied by progressive brain tissue loss and cognitive decline; however, several factors are thought to influence brain aging. We applied tensor-based morphometry to high-resolution brain MRI scans to determine whether educational level or physical activity was associated with brain tissue volumes in the elderly, particularly in regions susceptible to age-related atrophy. We mapped the 3D profile of brain volume differences in 226 healthy elderly subjects (130F/96M; 77.9 {\textpm} 3.6 SD years) from the Cardiovascular Health Study-Cognition Study. Statistical maps revealed the 3D profile of brain regions whose volumes were associated with educational level and physical activity (based on leisure-time energy expenditure). After controlling for age, sex, and physical activity, higher educational levels were associated with ~2-3\% greater tissue volumes, on average, in the temporal lobe gray matter. After controlling for age, sex, and education, greater physical activity was associated with ~2-2.5\% greater average tissue volumes in the white matter of the corona radiata extending into the parietal-occipital junction. Body mass index (BMI) was highly correlated with both education and physical activity, so we examined BMI as a contributing factor by including physical activity, education, and BMI in the same model; only BMI effects remained significant. This is one of the largest MRI studies of factors influencing structural brain aging, and BMI may be a key factor explaining the observed relationship between education, physical activity, and brain structure. Independent contributions to brain structure could not be teased apart as all these factors were highly correlated with one another.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Analysis of Variance, Body Mass Index, Brain, Brain Mapping, Educational Status, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Motor Activity, Neuropsychological Tests, Statistics as Topic}, issn = {1097-0193}, doi = {10.1002/hbm.21113}, author = {Ho, April J and Raji, Cyrus A and Becker, James T and Lopez, Oscar L and Kuller, Lewis H and Hua, Xue and Dinov, Ivo D and Stein, Jason L and Rosano, Caterina and Toga, Arthur W and Thompson, Paul M} } @article {1405, title = {Effect of Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease risk genes on trajectories of cognitive function in the Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Am J Psychiatry}, volume = {169}, year = {2012}, month = {2012 Sep}, pages = {954-62}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: The trajectory of cognitive decline in patients with late-onset Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease varies widely. Genetic variations in CLU, PICALM, and CR1 are associated with Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease, but it is unknown whether they exert their effects by altering cognitive trajectory in elderly individuals at risk for the disease.

METHOD: The authors developed a Bayesian model to fit cognitive trajectories in a cohort of elderly subjects and test for genetic effects. They first validated the model{\textquoteright}s ability to detect the previously established effects of APOE ε4 alleles on age at cognitive decline and of psychosis on the rate of cognitive decline in 802 subjects from the Cardiovascular Health Cognition Study who did not have dementia at study entry and developed incident dementia during follow-up. The authors then evaluated the effects of CLU, PICALM, and CR1 on age and rate of decline in 1,831 subjects who did not have dementia at study entry and then did or did not develop incident dementia by study{\textquoteright}s end.

RESULTS: The model generated robust fits to the observed cognitive trajectory data, and validation analysis supported the model{\textquoteright}s utility. CLU and CR1 were associated with more rapid cognitive decline. PICALM was associated with an earlier age at midpoint of cognitive decline. Associations remained after accounting for the effects of APOE and demographic factors.

CONCLUSIONS: Evaluation of cognitive trajectories provides a powerful approach to dissecting genetic effects on the processes leading to cognitive deterioration and Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease.

}, keywords = {Age of Onset, Aged, Alleles, Alzheimer Disease, Apolipoprotein E4, Bayes Theorem, Clusterin, Cohort Studies, Dementia, Disease Progression, Female, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Humans, Male, Models, Psychological, Monomeric Clathrin Assembly Proteins, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Receptors, Complement 3b, Risk Factors}, issn = {1535-7228}, doi = {10.1176/appi.ajp.2012.11121815}, author = {Sweet, Robert A and Seltman, Howard and Emanuel, James E and Lopez, Oscar L and Becker, James T and Bis, Joshua C and Weamer, Elise A and Demichele-Sweet, Mary Ann A and Kuller, Lewis H} } @article {6339, title = {Effect of dementia on the use of drugs for secondary prevention of ischemic heart disease.}, journal = {J Aging Res}, volume = {2014}, year = {2014}, month = {2014}, pages = {897671}, abstract = {

Background. Dementia and cardiovascular disease (CVD) are frequently comorbid. The presence of dementia may have an effect on how CVD is treated. Objective. To examine the effect of dementia on the use of four medications recommended for secondary prevention of ischemic heart disease (IHD): angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, beta-blockers, lipid-lowering medications, and antiplatelet medications. Design. Retrospective analysis of data from the Cardiovascular Health Study: Cognition Study. Setting and Subjects. 1,087 older adults in four US states who had or developed IHD between 1989 and 1998. Methods. Generalized estimating equations to explore the association between dementia and the use of guideline-recommended medications for the secondary prevention of IHD. Results. The length of follow-up for the cohort was 8.7 years and 265 (24\%) had or developed dementia during the study. Use of medications for the secondary prevention of IHD for patients with and without dementia increased during the study period. In models, subjects with dementia were not less likely to use any one particular class of medication but were less likely to use two or more classes of medications as a group (OR, 0.60; 95\% CI, 0.36-0.99). Conclusions. Subjects with dementia used fewer guideline-recommended medications for the secondary prevention of IHD than those without dementia.

}, issn = {2090-2204}, doi = {10.1155/2014/897671}, author = {Fowler, Nicole R and Barnato, Amber E and Degenholtz, Howard B and Curcio, Angela M and Becker, James T and Kuller, Lewis H and Lopez, Oscar L} } @article {6822, title = {Empirically Derived Trajectories to Dementia Over 15 Years of Follow-up Identified by Using Mixed Membership Models.}, journal = {Am J Epidemiol}, volume = {182}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Aug 15}, pages = {366-74}, abstract = {

Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia in the elderly, and the complex relationships among risk factors produce highly variable natural histories from normal cognition through the prodromal stage of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to clinical dementia. We used a novel statistical approach, mixed membership trajectory models, to capture the variety of such pathways in 652 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Study over 22 years of follow-up (1992-2014). We identified 3 trajectories: a "healthy" profile with a peak probability of MCI between 95 and 100 years of age and only a 50\% probability of dementia by age 100; an "intermediate" profile with a peak probability of MCI between 85 and 90 years of age and progression to dementia between 90 and 95 years; and an "unhealthy" profile with a peak probability of progressing to MCI between ages 75 and 80 years and to dementia between the ages of 80 and 85 years. Hypertension, education, race, and the ϵ4 allele of the apolipoprotein E gene all affected the closeness of an individual to 1 or more of the canonical trajectories. These results provide new insights into the natural history of Alzheimer disease and evidence for a potential difference in the pathophysiology of the development of dementia.

}, keywords = {Age Distribution, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Alzheimer Disease, Apolipoprotein E4, Cardiovascular Diseases, Comorbidity, Dementia, Diabetes Mellitus, Disease Progression, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Neuroimaging, Prevalence, Proportional Hazards Models, Risk Factors, Sex Distribution}, issn = {1476-6256}, doi = {10.1093/aje/kwv051}, author = {Lecci, Fabrizio and Junker, Brian and Kuller, Lewis H and Lopez, Oscar L and Becker, James T} } @article {8479, title = {Estrogen, brain structure, and cognition in postmenopausal women.}, journal = {Hum Brain Mapp}, year = {2020}, month = {2020 Sep 10}, abstract = {

Declining estrogen levels before, during, and after menopause can affect memory and risk for Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease. Undesirable side effects of hormone variations emphasize a role for hormone therapy (HT) where possible benefits include a delay in the onset of dementia-yet findings are inconsistent. Effects of HT may be mediated by estrogen receptors found throughout the brain. Effects may also depend on lifestyle factors, timing of use, and genetic risk. We studied the impact of self-reported HT use on brain volume in 562 elderly women (71-94 years) with mixed cognitive status while adjusting for aforementioned factors. Covariate-adjusted voxelwise linear regression analyses using a model with 16 predictors showed HT use as positively associated with regional brain volumes, regardless of cognitive status. Examinations of other factors related to menopause, oophorectomy and hysterectomy status independently yielded positive effects on brain volume when added to our model. One interaction term, HTxBMI, out of several examined, revealed significant negative association with overall brain volume, suggesting a greater reduction in brain volume than BMI alone. Our main findings relating HT to regional brain volume were as hypothesized, but some exploratory analyses were not in line with existing hypotheses. Studies suggest lower levels of estrogen resulting from oophorectomy and hysterectomy affect brain volume negatively, and the addition of HT modifies the relation between BMI and brain volume positively. Effects of HT may depend on the age range assessed, motivating studies with a wider age range as well as a randomized design.

}, issn = {1097-0193}, doi = {10.1002/hbm.25200}, author = {Boyle, Christina P and Raji, Cyrus A and Erickson, Kirk I and Lopez, Oscar L and Becker, James T and Gach, H Michael and Kuller, Lewis H and Longstreth, William and Carmichael, Owen T and Riedel, Brandalyn C and Thompson, Paul M} }