Cognitive Function In Old Age Research Articles

Mapping computational cognitive profiles of aging to dissociable brain and sociodemographic factors

Aging is associated with declines in cognition and brain structural integrity. However, there is equivocality over (1) the specificity of affected domains in different people, (2) the location of associated patterns of brain structural deterioration, and (3) the sociodemographic factors contributing to ‘unhealthy’ cognition. We aimed to identify cognitive profiles displayed by older adults and determine brain and sociodemographic features potentially shaping these profiles. A sample of Southeast-Asian older adults (N = 386) participated in a multi-session study comprising cognitive testing, neuroimaging, and a structured interview. We used computational models to extract latent mechanisms underlying cognitive flexibility and response inhibition. Data-driven methods were used to construct cognitive profiles based on standard performance measures and model parameters. We also investigated grey matter volume and machine-learning derived ‘brain-ages’. A profile associated with poor set-shifting and rigid focusing was associated with widespread grey matter reduction in cognitive control regions. A slow responding profile was associated with advanced brain-age. Both profiles were correlated with poor socioeconomic standing and cognitive reserve. We found that the impact of sociodemographic factors on cognitive profiles was partially mediated by total grey and white matter, and dorsolateral prefrontal and cerebellar volumes. This study furthers understanding of how distinct aging profiles of cognitive impairment uniquely correspond to specific vs. global brain deterioration and the significance of socioeconomic factors in informing cognitive performance in older age.

Low income, being without employment, and living alone: How they are associated with cognitive functioning - Results from the German National Cohort (NAKO)

Abstract Background While people with low socioeconomic status tend to have worse cognitive functioning, little is known about the impact of specific socioeconomic conditions. Aim of the present analysis was to investigate to what extent cognitive functioning differs by three socioeconomic conditions: low income, being without employment, and living alone. Methods A total of N = 158,144 participants (age 19-75 years) of the population-based German National Cohort (NAKO) provided data on socioeconomic conditions and completed cognitive testing. Multivariable regression model including the three socioeconomic conditions, age, sex, education, occupational status, having diabetes, hypertension, myocardial infarction, stroke, and depressive symptoms was used for analysis. Results Results from fully adjusted analysis indicated that cognitive functioning (z-score) was lower among those with low income (b=-0.53, CI95%=-0.57; -0.49) compared to not having low income, living alone (b=-0.10, CI95%=-0.14; -0.07) compared to not living alone, and being without employment (b=-0.22, CI95%=-0.27; -0.17) compared to being employed. The difference in cognitive functioning between those exposed compared to not exposed to the condition was changing slightly with older age among those with low income (interaction with age b=-2.39, CI95%=-3.24; -1.55) and, to a smaller extent, among those living alone (interaction with age b=-0.76, CI95%=-1.34; -0.19). Conclusions Low income, being without employment, and living alone were independently associated with poorer cognitive functioning after adjusting for confounders. As those with low income had the poorest cognitive functioning in old age, it is important to explore pathways of how cognitive health in this population group can be improved.

Norms for neuropsychological tests in cognitively healthy French oldest old adults.

Normal aging often leads to cognitive decline, and oldest old people, over 80 years old, have a 15% risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, it is important to have appropriate tools to assess cognitive function in old age. The study aimed to provide new norms for neuropsychological tests used to evaluate the cognitive abilities in people aged 80 years and older in France, focusing on the impact of education and gender differences. 107 healthy participants with an average age of 85.2 years, with no neurological history or major cognitive deficits were included. A comprehensive neuropsychological assessment was performed, covering several cognitive functions such as memory, visuospatial abilities, executive functions, attention, processing speed, and praxis. Individuals with lower levels of education performed poorly on some tests and took longer to complete. Gender differences were observed, with women outperforming men in verbal episodic memory, while men showed better performance in visuoconstructive tasks. The participants showed lower performance in verbal episodic memory compared to norms established in previous French studies. In relation to executive functions, participants were slower to perform complex tasks than participants in previous studies. This study provides cognitive norms specifically adapted to the oldest old population, which differ from established norms for younger aging adults. It highlights the importance of including these norms in future clinical and scientific investigations. The findings underscore the importance of education on cognitive abilities and emphasize the need to consider gender differences when assessing cognitive functions in aging populations.

Critical menarche age for late-life dementia and the role of education and socioeconomic status

ABSTRACT Estrogen exposure during menstrual years has been associated with late-life neuroprotection. We explored the presence of an age-sensitive menarche window for cognition in old age and the impact of socioeconomic status and education. We compared neuropsychological performance of 1082 older women [MeanAGE = 72.69 (5.48)] with menarche in childhood, early-, mid-, and late-adolescence and dementia prevalence, severity, and type, including the effects of education and socioeconomic status. Adjusting for covariates, menarche at 11–14 years of age was associated with better memory, executive and global cognitive functioning in old age, and stronger positive effects of education and socioeconomic status on cognition than those with menarche at 15–17 years. We found a critical age window for the neuroprotective effects of estrogens during early adolescence, putting women with later menarche at higher risk for cognitive decline. Effects of socioeconomic status and education in adulthood should be a focus of future research.

Characterising and differentiating cognitive and motor speed in older adults: structural equation modelling on a UK longitudinal birth cohort

ObjectivesInformation processing speed (IPS) has been proposed to be a key component in healthy ageing and cognitive functioning. Yet, current studies lack a consistent definition and specific influential characteristics. This...

Extraction of sleep information from clinical notes of Alzheimer's disease patients using natural language processing.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the United States. Sleep is one of the lifestyle-related factors that has been shown critical for optimal cognitive function in old age. However, there is a lack of research studying the association between sleep and AD incidence. A major bottleneck for conducting such research is that the traditional way to acquire sleep information is time-consuming, inefficient, non-scalable, and limited to patients' subjective experience. We aim to automate the extraction of specific sleep-related patterns, such as snoring, napping, poor sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, night wakings, other sleep problems, and sleep duration, from clinical notes of AD patients. These sleep patterns are hypothesized to play a role in the incidence of AD, providing insight into the relationship between sleep and AD onset and progression. A gold standard dataset is created from manual annotation of 570 randomly sampled clinical note documents from the adSLEEP, a corpus of 192000 de-identified clinical notes of 7266 AD patients retrieved from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). We developed a rule-based natural language processing (NLP) algorithm, machine learning models, and large language model (LLM)-based NLP algorithms to automate the extraction of sleep-related concepts, including snoring, napping, sleep problem, bad sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, night wakings, and sleep duration, from the gold standard dataset. The annotated dataset of 482 patients comprised a predominantly White (89.2%), older adult population with an average age of 84.7 years, where females represented 64.1%, and a vast majority were non-Hispanic or Latino (94.6%). Rule-based NLP algorithm achieved the best performance of F1 across all sleep-related concepts. In terms of positive predictive value (PPV), the rule-based NLP algorithm achieved the highest PPV scores for daytime sleepiness (1.00) and sleep duration (1.00), while the machine learning models had the highest PPV for napping (0.95) and bad sleep quality (0.86), and LLAMA2 with finetuning had the highest PPV for night wakings (0.93) and sleep problem (0.89). Although sleep information is infrequently documented in the clinical notes, the proposed rule-based NLP algorithm and LLM-based NLP algorithms still achieved promising results. In comparison, the machine learning-based approaches did not achieve good results, which is due to the small size of sleep information in the training data. The results show that the rule-based NLP algorithm consistently achieved the best performance for all sleep concepts. This study focused on the clinical notes of patients with AD but could be extended to general sleep information extraction for other diseases.

Trajectories of Occupational Cognitive Demands and Risk of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia in Later Life: The HUNT4 70+ Study.

The cognitive reserve hypothesis posits that cognitively stimulating work delays the onset of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. However, the effect of occupational cognitive demands across midlife on the risk of these conditions is unclear. Using a cohort study design, we evaluated the association between registry-based trajectories of occupational cognitive demands from ages 30-65 years and clinically diagnosed MCI and dementia in participants in the HUNT4 70+ Study (2017-19). Group-based trajectory modeling identified trajectories of occupational cognitive demands, measured by the routine task intensity (RTI) index (lower RTI indicates more cognitively demanding occupation) from the Occupational Information Network. Multinomial regression was implemented to estimate the relative risk ratios (RRRs) of MCI and dementia, after adjusting for age, sex, education, income, baseline hypertension, obesity, diabetes, psychiatric impairment, hearing impairment, loneliness, smoking status, and physical inactivity assessed at HUNT1-2 in 1984-1986 and 1995-1997. To handle missing data, we used inverse probability weighting to account for nonparticipation in cognitive testing and multiple imputation. Based on longitudinal RTI scores for 305 unique occupations, 4 RTI trajectory groups were identified (n = 7,003, 49.8% women, age range 69-104 years): low RTI (n = 1,431, 20.4%), intermediate-low RTI (n = 1,578, 22.5%), intermediate-high RTI (n = 2,601, 37.1%), and high RTI (n = 1,393, 19.9%). Participants in the high RTI group had a higher risk of MCI (RRR 1.74, 95% CI 1.41-2.14) and dementia (RRR 1.37, 95% CI 1.01-1.86), after adjusting for age, sex, and education compared with participants in the low RTI group. In a sensitivity analysis, controlling for income and baseline health-related factors, the point estimates were not appreciably changed (RRR 1.66, 95% CI 1.35-2.06 for MCI, and RRR 1.31, 95% CI 0.96-1.78 for dementia). People with a history of cognitively stimulating occupations during their 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s had a lower risk of MCI and dementia older than 70 years, highlighting the importance of occupational cognitive stimulation during midlife for maintaining cognitive function in old age. Further research is required to pinpoint the specific occupational cognitive demands that are most advantageous for maintaining later-life cognitive function.

Association of vitamin B1 intake with geriatric cognitive function: An analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2011 to 2014

BackgroundThe association between dietary vitamin B1 intake and cognitive performance in the noninstitutionalized older adult population of the United States remains unclear. PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the association between vitamin B1 intake and cognitive performance in older adults in the United States. MethodsVitamin B1 intake was assessed through two 24-h dietary recalls. Weighted logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between vitamin B1 intake and three cognitive scores (immediate recall test [IRT], animal fluency test [AFT], and digit symbol substitution test [DSST]). Cognitive performance was measured by these three tests, and individuals scoring below the lowest quartile were categorized as cognitive impairment. Sensitivity analysis, including dose–response curves, subgroup analyses, interaction effects, per 1 SD, and quartiles, were performed to ensure the accuracy of the conclusion. ResultsA total of 2896 participants over the age of 60 were included in this study. In the adjusted final model, the association between vitamin B1 intake and low cognitive performance in old age was statistically significant, with the following odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs): IRT, 0.75 (0.57, 0.97), P = 0.018; AFT, 0.68 (0.50, 0.92), P = 0.007; DSST, 0.71 (0.54, 0.92), P = 0.005. Subgroup analyses showed that this association was statistically significant among males, white, low-education, and no memory impairment. The results of the sensitivity analyses confirmed the association between VB1 and cognitive function in old age and the absence of interactions in the final calibrated model. ConclusionDietary vitamin B1 intake is negatively associated with cognitive performance in older adults.

THE INFLUENCE OF VARIOUS RISK FACTORS RELATED TO METABOLIC DISORDERS ON COGNITIVE FUNCTION IN THE ELDERLY GROUP

Dementia is a condition characterized by significant impairment in at least one domain of cognition, including executive function, complex attention, language, learning, memory, perceptual-motor, or social cognition. Risk factors for vascular dementia include smoking, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, obesity, and lack of exercise. This study aims to examine the relationship between metabolic disorders and dementia in the elderly. The design of this research was cross-sectional at the Hana Nursing Home in January 2024, with inclusion criteria in the form of an elderly group of at least 60 years. The independent variables in this study were blood pressure, hemoglobin, hematocrit, body mass index, cholesterol, uric acid, and random blood sugar. The dependent variable in this study includes the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score. This study included 61 respondents who met the inclusion criteria. The results of the multiple linear regression statistical test (Backward LR) with 6 stages stated that body mass index (p-value: 0.001; B: 0.281) and hematocrit (p-value: 0.011; B: 0.528) played a significant role in decreasing the value MMSE. The conclusion of this study is that body mass index, and hematocrit are related to dementia. This research opens up insight into the importance of controlling body weight and body composition, especially in the elderly group to prevent decline in cognitive function in old age.

Fatores associados ao desempenho cognitivo acima da média em idosos longevos

Abstract Objective To investigate the factors associated with performance equal to or higher than the 95th percentile in the Mini Mental State Examination of elderly people aged 80 years and over. Method This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, and quantitative research conducted with a convenience sample composed of 101 cognitively healthy older adults residing in Brazil's Federal District, assessed by scales that measure mood, social support, functional performance, and health. Results Bivariate statistical analyses indicated that older individuals with better cognitive performance in the Mini Mental State Examination, when compared to participants with performance below the 95th percentile, showed better self-perceived health, greater satisfaction with the ability to perform daily tasks, and a more positive evaluation of general social support and in the domain of having someone to talk to when feeling lonely. Conclusion High global cognitive performance in old age is associated with perceived health, satisfaction with functional performance, and social support.

Exploring the link between biologically defined resilience, brain pathology, and cognitive functioning in old age and the contribution of biological sex

Exploring the link between biologically defined resilience, brain pathology, and cognitive functioning in old age and the contribution of biological sex

Hippocampal volume as mediator between physical fitness and cognitive performance in old age – preliminary results

AbstractBackgroundPrevious studies show that physical activity counteracts age‐related memory decline and is positively associated with hippocampal volume. However, only few studies examined if hippocampal volumes mediate the effect of physical activity on cognitive performance. Furthermore, exercise modalities other than aerobic activity are rarely considered in this context. Since sarcopenia (muscle atrophy) is associated with age‐related cognitive decline, muscular capacity seems to be another essential fitness indicator.MethodForty‐one cognitively unimpaired older adults (age: 72.94 ± 7.85yrs; 24 female) underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery assessing, i.a., global cognitive performance using CERAD‐Plus (Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease) and PACC5 (preclinical Alzheimer’s cognitive composite). Their physical fitness was measured in the form of both aerobic (VO2max) and muscular capacity (z‐normalized composite: grip strength, appendicular skeletal muscle mass and walking performance). Anterior (aHCV), posterior and whole hippocampal volumes (wHCV) were extracted from their T1w MRI images (3T MEMPRAGE, 0.8×0.8×0.8mm resolution) using the T1‐ASHS segmentation algorithm (manual correction of 32 hemispheres). Total gray matter volumes (GMV) were extracted using CAT12 in SPM12. Mediation analyses were performed to test the hypothesis that GMV or hippocampal volumes (corrected for intracranial volumes) mediate the positive effect of physical fitness on cognitive performance including age, sex and education years as covariates (bootstrapping approach: 10000 iterations).ResultHigher aerobic capacity (VO2max) was related to better cognitive performance (CERAD, p = .048), as was higher muscular capacity (CERAD, p = .002; PACC5, p = .002). Higher muscular capacity, but not VO2max, further predicted aHCV (p = .021) and wHCV (p = .035). Only wHCV mediated the relationship between muscular capacity and global cognitive performance (PACC5, p = .045).ConclusionOur results provide further evidence that higher aerobic and muscular capacity are associated with better global cognitive performance in older adults. While preliminary, the results suggest that muscular capacity exerts its neuroprotective effects at least partially via greater structural integrity of the hippocampus. The absence of a mediation effect of GMV may support the specific importance of maintained hippocampal structural integrity against cognitive decline. However, our small sample size may limit the statistical power to detect effects.

Developing Topics.

Exercise in adolescence has been shown to increase cognitive reserve and have a long-term preventive effect on cognitive function in older age (Dik, M. G., et al. 2003). However, it remains unclear whether different types and intensities of adolescent exercise have distinct impacts on cognitive function later in life. Therefore, the present study investigated the association between exercise types and intensity in adolescence and mild cognitive impairments (MCI) in older adults. We analyzed data from the Bunkyo Health Study, which included 659 men and 912 women aged 65-84. MCI was defined as the Japanese version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment score of 22 points or less. We classified the 35 exercises participants engaged in their junior high school and high school reference to the classification guidelines (Maron, B. J., et al. 2015), which were divided into three levels of exercise intensity (low, moderate, high) in each type of exercise (aerobic, resistance, or a combination of both). Multivariate-adjusted logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs) in each category level for the prevalence of MCI, as compared with the non-exercise group. In junior high school analysis, the ORs(95%CIs) for MCI were significantly lower in the moderate-resistance level group (OR: 0.45 [0.21-0.95], P-value = 0.04) and the high-combination level group (OR: 0.30 [0.11-0.81], P-value = 0.02) in men, whereas there were no significant differences in women. Similar results were observed in high school analysis, with lower ORs for MCI in moderate-resistance level (OR: 0.36 [0.16-0.77], P-value = 0.01) and high-combination level (OR: 0.34 [0.14-0.80], P-value = 0.01) groups, but not for women. Participation in the moderate-resistance level and/or the high-combination level exercises in junior high school or high school was associated with a lower prevalence of MCI in older age among men, but not women.

Speech processing in the brain at risk for dementia

AbstractBackgroundGiven the close relationship between hearing and cognitive function in older age, characterization of speech processing deficits along the auditory pathway is of great importance for the brain at risk of dementia. In the ascending, primary auditory pathway, signals pass through subcortical relay stations in the brainstem and midbrain before being integrated into cortical areas. A recent study suggests that the pathophysiology of MCI extends to speech encoding in the brainstem and that both cortical and subcortical markers of speech processing have predictive potential for putative Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). In this project, we are testing these neural speech processing markers to see if they can distinguish healthy older adults with age‐related hearing loss from those at risk for dementia.MethodsElectroencephalography (EEG, 32 channels, sampling rate = 16 384 Hz) will be recorded from N = 40 older participants (age ≥ 60 years, retired) while listening to excerpts from an audiobook. We use a novel EEG paradigm that allows us to simultaneously measure cortical and subcortical responses to natural running speech. Based on their Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score, participants are divided into an experimental group with “putative MCI” (MoCA < 26) and a control group (MoCA ≥ 26). In addition, we perform audiometric testing with pure tones (PTA) and speech‐in‐noise (SiN) tests to assess participants' hearing function.ResultsWe are currently in the middle of data collection and will be able to present preliminary results at AAIC. We expect to see altered speech processing in the experimental group, particularly driven by slower and weaker encoding at the subcortical level. In a next step, we aim to use the neural markers of speech processing that emerge from this framework as features for a diagnostic model that predicts MCI using a binary classifier, considering the hearing status of the participants.ConclusionThe main goal of this study is to investigate neural markers of speech processing for their differential diagnostic potential for the brain at risk for dementia. Depending on the results, such neurophysiological markers could prove useful for early diagnosis in the clinic in the longer term.

Determinants of successful cognitive aging over 15 years: a population‐based study

AbstractBackgroundAlthough aging is related to loss in cognitive function, some individuals maintain high levels of cognitive performance also in late life. However, studies mapping longitudinal cognitive trajectories are scarce and little is known about the factors that may promote successful cognitive aging (SCA). We sought to identify predictors of SCA, based on latent profiles derived from interindividual differences in rate of change across several cognitive domains.MethodWe followed 1,966 individuals from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen (SNAC‐K) over 15 years (mean baseline age = 71.6 years; 62.9% female). Participants were free from dementia at baseline and had undergone at least two cognitive assessments during follow‐up. Cognition was assessed with a comprehensive battery, including tests of semantic memory, episodic recall and recognition, letter and verbal fluency, and executive function. We estimated level and change within each of the cognitive domains with linear mixed effect models, based on which we classified participants into successful, normal, or decline groups. These groups were used to derive profiles of overall cognitive change trajectories, through latent class analysis. We then investigated demographic, health, lifestyle, and genetic predictors of profile membership.ResultWe obtained three latent cognitive profiles. 31.6% of the sample was classified as successful, 50.6% as normal, and 17.8% as decliner. In multi‐adjusted multinomial logistic regression analysis, membership in the successful profile was predicted by female sex, higher education, and a faster walking speed (ps < 0.003). Current smoking, feelings of loneliness, and carrying the Apolipoprotein ԑ4‐allele were associated with a lower likelihood of being classified as successful (ps < 0.037). Higher age, diagnosis of diabetes or depression, and being an ԑ4‐carrier increased the likelihood of being classified into the decline profile (ps < 0.026).ConclusionWe identified several demographic, lifestyle, health, and genetic factors of SCA. Of note, these factors were different from those that predicted accelerated cognitive decline. Although some cognitive loss may be an inevitable part of aging, our results suggest certain modifiable factors (i.e. smoking and quality of social interactions) to be related to maintained cognitive function in older age.

Late-life food insecurity and cognition: exploring timing, duration, and mechanisms among older Mexican adults

BackgroundFood insecurity (FI) remains a global public health problem. FI is more prevalent in low-and middle-income countries than high-income countries. FI is related with worse cognitive outcomes including cognitive function, cognitive decline, and cognitive impairment. Few studies have sought to identify how patterns of FI relate with cognitive function in old age and the potential mechanisms underlying this association.MethodsData from the 2015 and 2018 waves of the Mexican Health and Aging Study (n = 9,654, age 50+) were used in this study. Reports of FI in 2015 and 2018 were combined to create four patterns of FI groups: “persistently food secure”, “became food secure”, “became food insecure”, and “persistently food insecure”. Linear regression was used to estimate associations between patterns of FI and cognitive task performance. The mediating roles of depressive symptoms, body mass index, and chronic conditions were tested using Karlson, Holm, and Breen methodology.ResultsApproximately half of the sample were persistently food secure, 17% became food secure, 14% became FI, and 15% experienced persistent FI. When adjusting for demographic/socioeconomic confounders, persistent FI related with worse Verbal Learning, Verbal Recall, Visual Scanning, and Verbal Fluency performance compared to the persistently food secure. Becoming FI related with worse Verbal Learning, Visual Scanning, and Verbal Fluency. Mediation analyses provided support for depressive symptoms mediating associations between FI and poorer cognition, where 48% of the association between persistent FI and worse Verbal Recall performance was attributed to higher depressive symptoms. Becoming food secure was not associated with cognitive performance compared to the persistently food secure.ConclusionsFI may represent an important modifiable risk factor for poorer cognitive outcomes among older adults. Public health efforts should focus on providing stable food access to older adults, especially those living in poverty.

On the origin of cognition: How childhood conditions shape cognitive function in old age

This paper examines the long-term relationship between early childhood conditions and cognitive ageing. Using unique data from a longitudinal survey of Chinese older people, we find that people with adverse childhood conditions not only have lower cognitive ability, but also exhibit faster cognitive deterioration at older ages. The results also indicate that the educational attainment is one of the most important channels mediating the associations. Further analyses suggest that females suffer more from the adverse childhood conditions than males, and the relationship is more pronounced for the fluid intelligence than the crystallized intelligence.

Cognitive aging and experience of playing a musical instrument.

Musical instrument training has been found to be associated with higher cognitive performance in older age. However, it is not clear whether this association reflects a reduced rate of cognitive decline in older age (differential preservation), and/or the persistence of cognitive advantages associated with childhood musical training (preserved differentiation). It is also unclear whether this association is consistent across different cognitive domains. Our sample included 420 participants from the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936. Between ages 70 and 82, participants had completed the same 13 cognitive tests (every 3 years), measuring the cognitive domains of verbal ability, verbal memory, processing speed, and visuospatial ability. At age 82, participants reported their lifetime musical experiences; 40% had played a musical instrument, mostly in childhood and adolescence. In minimally adjusted models, participants with greater experience playing a musical instrument tended to perform better across each cognitive domain at age 70 and this association persisted at subsequent waves up to age 82. After controlling for additional covariates (childhood cognitive ability, years of education, socioeconomic status, and health variables), only associations with processing speed (β = 0.131, p = .044) and visuospatial ability (β = 0.154, p = .008) remained statistically significant. Participants with different amounts of experience playing a musical instrument showed similar rates of decline across each cognitive domain between ages 70 and 82. These results suggest a preserved differentiation effect: Cognitive advantages (in processing speed and visuospatial ability) associated with experience playing a musical instrument (mostly earlier in life) are preserved during older age. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Lifecourse investigation of the cumulative impact of adversity on cognitive function in old age and the mediating role of mental health: longitudinal birth cohort study

ObjectiveTo investigate the accumulation of adversities (duration of exposure to any, economic, psychosocial) across the lifecourse (birth to 63 years) on cognitive function in older age, and the mediating role...

Dimensions of cognitive reserve and their predictive power of cognitive performance and decline in the elderly.

The relative importance of different components of cognitive reserve (CR), as well as their differences by gender, are poorly established. To explore several dimensions of CR, their differences by gender, and their effects on cognitive performance and trajectory in a cohort of older people without relevant psychiatric, neurologic, or systemic conditions. Twenty-one variables related to the education, occupation, social activities, and life habits of 1,093 home-dwelling and cognitively healthy individuals, between 68 and 86 years old, were explored using factorial analyses to delineate several dimensions of CR. These dimensions were contrasted with baseline cognitive performance, follow-up over 5 years of participants' cognitive trajectory, conversion to mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and brain volumes using regression and growth curve models, controlling for gender, age, marital status, number of medications, trait anxiety, depression, and ApoE genotype. Five highly intercorrelated dimensions of CR were identified, with some differences in their structure and effects based on gender. Three of them, education/occupation, midlife cognitive activities, and leisure activities, were significantly associated with late-life cognitive performance, accounting for more than 20% of its variance. The education/occupation had positive effect on the rate of cognitive decline during the 5-year follow up in individuals with final diagnosis of MCI but showed a reduced risk for MCI in men. None of these dimensions showed significant relationships with gray or white matter volumes. Proxy markers of CR can be represented by five interrelated dimensions. Education/occupation, midlife cognitive activities, and leisure activities are associated with better cognitive performance in old age and provide a buffer against cognitive impairment. Education/occupation may delay the clinical onset of MCI and is also associated with the rate of change in cognitive performance.