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Day S, Roberts S, Launder NH, Goh AMY, Draper B, Bahar-Fuchs A, Loi SM, Laver K, Withall A, Cations M. Age of Symptom Onset and Longitudinal Course of Sporadic Alzheimer's Disease, Frontotemporal Dementia, and Vascular Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Alzheimers Dis 2021; 85:1819-1833. [PMID: 34958038 DOI: 10.3233/jad-215360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding how the age of dementia symptom onset affects the longitudinal course of dementia can assist with prognosis and care planning. OBJECTIVE To synthesize evidence regarding the relationship of age of symptom onset with the longitudinal course of sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD), vascular dementia (VaD), and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). METHODS We searched Medline, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus for longitudinal studies that examined the impact of sporadic AD, VaD, or FTD symptom onset age on measures of cognition, function, or behavioral symptoms. Studies that examined age at diagnosis only were excluded. Quantitative meta-analysis was conducted where studies reported sufficient data for pooling. RESULTS Thirty studies met all inclusion criteria (people with AD (n = 26), FTD (n = 4)) though no studies examined VaD. Earlier onset of AD was associated with more rapid annual cognitive decline (estimate = -0.07; 95% CI -0.14 to 0.00; p = 0.045). Most studies that stratified their sample reported that younger AD onset (usually < 65 years) was associated with more rapid cognitive decline. Other evidence was inconclusive. CONCLUSION Younger people with AD appear to have a poorer prognosis in terms of faster cognitive decline than older people with AD. More research is required to determine the impact of symptom onset age in VaD and FTD, and on functional decline in all dementias.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sally Day
- College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide SA, Australia
| | - Stefanie Roberts
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne VIC, Australia.,National Ageing Research Institute, Melbourne VIC, Australia
| | - Nathalie H Launder
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne VIC, Australia
| | - Anita M Y Goh
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne VIC, Australia.,National Ageing Research Institute, Melbourne VIC, Australia
| | - Brian Draper
- School of Psychiatry, UNSW Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Alex Bahar-Fuchs
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne VIC, Australia
| | - Samantha M Loi
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne VIC, Australia.,Neuropsychiatry, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville VIC, Australia
| | - Kate Laver
- College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, South Australia, Australia
| | - Adrienne Withall
- School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,Ageing Futures Institute, UNSW Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Monica Cations
- College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide SA, Australia
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Perera G, Mueller C, Stewart R. Factors associated with slow progression of cognitive impairment following first dementia diagnosis. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2021; 36:271-285. [PMID: 32881117 DOI: 10.1002/gps.5420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2020] [Accepted: 08/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To investigate the extent to which slow progression of dementia after diagnosis might be predicted from routine longitudinal healthcare data, in order to clarify characteristics of people who experience this outcome. METHODS A retrospective observational study was conducted using data from the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Biomedical Research Centre Case Register. This study included all patients receiving a first dementia diagnosis between 2006 and 2017, restricted to those with a baseline Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score within 6 months of initial diagnosis of dementia and at least one MMSE score after 3 years post-diagnosis. Slow progression was defined as a change in MMSE score of -1, 0 or an increase at the follow-up point. This group was compared to the remainder with an MMSE decline of -2 or more. RESULTS Overall, 682 patients with slow progression were compared to 1045 with faster progression. In the confounder-adjusted multivariate logistic regression model, slow progression was more likely in younger patients (age 65-74 years; odds ratio: 1.18; 95% confidence intervals: 1.04-1.37), males (1.24; 1.01-1.53), those with moderate or severe dementia according to MMSE, patients with mixed-type dementia (2.06; 1.11-3.82) compared to Alzheimer's disease and less likely in those receiving acetylcholinesterase inhibitor (AChEI) treatment (0.57; 0.46-0.71). CONCLUSION Slow dementia progression after diagnosis was common in patients with mixed Alzheimer's and vascular dementia, younger age, males and non-receipt of AChEIs, possibly suggesting non-Alzheimer pathologies and clarifying such predictors is important, as there is currently very limited information on which to base prognosis estimates in post-diagnosis counselling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gayan Perera
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Christoph Mueller
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
| | - Robert Stewart
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
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Loeffler DA. Modifiable, Non-Modifiable, and Clinical Factors Associated with Progression of Alzheimer's Disease. J Alzheimers Dis 2021; 80:1-27. [PMID: 33459643 DOI: 10.3233/jad-201182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
There is an extensive literature relating to factors associated with the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD), but less is known about factors which may contribute to its progression. This review examined the literature with regard to 15 factors which were suggested by PubMed search to be positively associated with the cognitive and/or neuropathological progression of AD. The factors were grouped as potentially modifiable (vascular risk factors, comorbidities, malnutrition, educational level, inflammation, and oxidative stress), non-modifiable (age at clinical onset, family history of dementia, gender, Apolipoprotein E ɛ4, genetic variants, and altered gene regulation), and clinical (baseline cognitive level, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and extrapyramidal signs). Although conflicting results were found for the majority of factors, a positive association was found in nearly all studies which investigated the relationship of six factors to AD progression: malnutrition, genetic variants, altered gene regulation, baseline cognitive level, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and extrapyramidal signs. Whether these or other factors which have been suggested to be associated with AD progression actually influence the rate of decline of AD patients is unclear. Therapeutic approaches which include addressing of modifiable factors associated with AD progression should be considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A Loeffler
- Beaumont Research Institute, Department of Neurology, Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USA
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Ruiz-Fernández MD, Hernández-Padilla JM, Ortiz-Amo R, Fernández-Sola C, Fernández-Medina IM, Granero-Molina J. Predictor Factors of Perceived Health in Family Caregivers of People Diagnosed with Mild or Moderate Alzheimer's Disease. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2019; 16:ijerph16193762. [PMID: 31591314 PMCID: PMC6801649 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16193762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/03/2019] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Caring for a person diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease has a negative impact on family caregivers' psychological health. This study examined the factors related to 'perceived health' and 'presence of new-onset mental health problems' in family caregivers of people diagnosed with mild and moderate Alzheimer's disease. A cross-sectional observational study carried out in Almeria's Healthcare District (Spain). A total of 255 family caregivers (42.4% cared for people with mild Alzheimer's disease and 57.6% cared for people with moderate Alzheimer's disease) participated in the study from January to December 2015. Mainly, caregivers were women (81.5% in the mild Alzheimer's disease group and 88.4% in the moderate Alzheimer's disease group), and their average age was 56.54 years (standard deviation (SD) = 13.13) and 54.47 years (SD = 11.71), respectively. Around 47% of the caregivers had been caring for the person with Alzheimer's between two and five years. The Goldberg General Health Questionnaire was used to measure perceived health and the presence of new-onset mental health problems. An exploratory descriptive analysis and a multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted. For caregivers of people with mild Alzheimer's disease, 'perceived health' was related to 'perceived social support' (r = -0.21; p = 0.028), 'person's level of dependency' (r = -0.24, p = 0.05), 'severity of the person's neuropsychiatric symptoms' (r = 0.22; p = 0.05), and 'caregiver's emotional distress in response to the person's neuropsychiatric symptoms' (r = 0.22; p = 0.05). For caregivers of people with moderate Alzheimer's disease, 'perceived health' was related to 'perceived social support' (r = -0.31; p ˂ 0.01), 'presence of neuropsychiatric symptoms' (r = 0.27, p = 0.01), 'severity of the person's neuropsychiatric symptoms' (r = 0.32, p = 0.01) and 'caregiver's emotional distress in response to the person's neuropsychiatric symptoms' (r = 0.029; p = 0.01). The presence of new-onset mental health problems was detected in 46.3% (n = 50) of caregivers of people with mild Alzheimer's and 61.9% (n = 91) of caregivers of people with moderate Alzheimer's. When people are diagnosed with mild Alzheimer's disease, intervention programs for caregivers should aim to regulate emotions and promote positive coping strategies. When people are diagnosed with moderate Alzheimer's disease, intervention programs for caregivers must allow them to adapt to caregiving demands that arise with the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José Manuel Hernández-Padilla
- Department of Nursing Science, Physiotherapy and Medicine, University of Almeria, 04120 Almeria, Spain.
- Adult, Child and Midwifery Department, School of Health and Education, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK.
| | - Rocío Ortiz-Amo
- Department of Nursing Science, Physiotherapy and Medicine, University of Almeria, 04120 Almeria, Spain.
| | - Cayetano Fernández-Sola
- Department of Nursing Science, Physiotherapy and Medicine, University of Almeria, 04120 Almeria, Spain.
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, 4810101 Temuco, Chile.
| | | | - José Granero-Molina
- Department of Nursing Science, Physiotherapy and Medicine, University of Almeria, 04120 Almeria, Spain.
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, 4810101 Temuco, Chile.
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To date, most research in dementia has focused either on the identification of dementia risk prediction or on understanding changes and predictors experienced by individuals before diagnosis. Despite little is known about how individuals change after dementia diagnosis, there is agreement that changes occur over different time scales and are multidomain. In this study, we present an overview of the literature regarding the longitudinal course of dementia. RECENT FINDINGS Our review suggests the evidence is scarce and findings reported are often inconsistent. We identified large heterogeneity in dementia trajectories, risk factors considered and modelling approaches employed. The heterogeneity of dementia trajectories also varies across outcomes and domains investigated. SUMMARY It became clear that dementia progresses very differently, both between and within individuals. This implies an average trajectory is not informative to individual persons and this needs to be taken into account when communicating prognosis in clinical care. As persons with dementia change in many more ways during their patient journey, heterogeneous disease progressions are the result of disease and patient characteristics. Prognostic models would benefit from including variables across a number of domains. International coordination of replication and standardization of the research approach is recommended.
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