B - 37 Cognitive Aging in Rural Communities: Preliminary Characterization of Memory in a Community Cohort from Southern Nevada.

Abstract

Rural-dwelling older adults face unique health challenges that may increase risk for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias; however, they are severely underrepresented in aging research. Here we present an initial characterization of memory functioning in a prospectively followed rural community cohort, with comparisons to an urban cohort from the same region. Community-dwelling adults over age 50 currently living in a non-metropolitan area are eligible for enrollment. Clinical characterization includes the NACC Uniform Data Set supplemented with additional verbal list learning and nonverbal memory measures. Primary comparisons explored group differences between urban and rural-dwellers, stratified by cognitive diagnosis. The influence of neighborhood disadvantage on memory was also assessed. There were no differences in demographics or overall clinical status between the rural (n = 81) and urban samples (n = 129). Approximately half of each sample was cognitively normal. Differences in verbal memory were found for learning (d = 0.45), recall (d = 0.48), and recognition such that rural-dwelling older adults demonstrated a memory advantage relative to urban-dwelling adults; however, the magnitude of impairment within each cohort was larger among rural-dwelling older adults (d = 1.65-2.06) compared to urban-dwelling adults (d = 0.8-1.45). No differences in nonverbal memory were found, and there were no effects of neighborhood disadvantage on any memory measure. Although rural living may increase risk for dementia, we found a small to moderate memory advantage for rural-dwellers. Taken together, our findings suggest that late-life rural living in this geographical region is not necessarily associated with an increased burden of memory impairment, and could actually be protective for some individuals.