Cognitive Functioning in Late-life Depression: A Critical Review of Sociodemographic, Neurobiological, and Treatment Correlates

Abstract

Both clinical and subthreshold depression in older adults are associated with cognitive dysfunction. This review summarizes the latest literature on patterns of cognitive functioning in late-life depression (LLD), including moderators of the relationship between depression and cognitive functioning and underlying neurobiological mechanisms. LLD is associated with cognitive dysfunction across multiple domains, particularly processing speed and executive functions. This relationship is moderated by demographic and clinical variables such as sex, race, age of onset, and severity of different symptom dimensions of depression. The impact of depression treatment on cognitive deficits in LLD differs across treatment approaches, but overall LLD is associated with persistent cognitive deficits after depression remission. Clarifying treatments with dual mood and cognitive benefits is an important area for future research. Our understanding of and treatment for cognitive deficits in LLD will also benefit from additional work that examines clinical and demographic contributions.