Prevalence of cognitive impairment and associated factors in older people

• Published in: Journal of affective disorders Vol. 355; pp. 283 - 289
• Main Authors: Campos, Ana Carolina Brunatto Falchetti, Teixeira, Iara Gonçalves, Moraes, Nayara de Souza, Cadorin, Isabela de Jesus, Morelli, Patrícia Mariotto, Lidio, Adrielly Vargas, Medeiros, Eduarda Behenck, Garcez, Michelle Lima, Keller, Gabriela Serafim, Kucharska, Ewa, da Rosa, Maria Inês, Ceretta, Luciane Bisognin, Quevedo, João, Budni, Josiane
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 15-06-2024
• Subjects: Age-related pathology; Cognitive impairment; Human aging; Long-lived adult; Longevity; Human aging; Longevity; Long-lived adult; Age-related pathology; Cognitive impairment; Cognitive decline
• ISSN: 0165-0327; 1573-2517
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.072

Older people are the fastest-growing age group, with the highest risk of cognitive impairment. This study assessed the prevalence and associated factors with cognitive impairment in community-dwelling older people.
Older people were interviewed and accomplished through sociodemographic and health questionnaires. The quantitative variables were described by mean and standard deviation or median and interquartile range. The significance level adopted was 5 % (p < 0.05). The association between the quantitative variables was evaluated using the Pearson or Spearman correlation coefficients.
The research population comprised 165 long-lived adults aged ≥80. The youngest one was 80, and the oldest one was 94 years old. The participants were 84.8 ± 3.6 years old, female (63 %) with a mean of education of 2.9 ± 1.8 years. A poor performance in the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was found in 58 (35.2 %) individuals when adjusted for educational level. After adjustment for confounding factors, body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.09), total older adults' income (up to 1 minimum wage [mw], p = 0.023; over 1 to 2 mw, p = 0.023), functional disability (Moderate dependence 75 %, p = 0.038; Moderate dependence 50 %, p = 0.081; Moderate dependence 25 %, p = 0.054), and the anxiety scale (p = 0.032), remained associated with cognitive impairment.
This study showed that BMI, total older adults' income, functional disability, and anxiety are related to cognitive impairment in long-lived adults. This study has some limitations, such as the fact that it is a cross-sectional study, the reduced number of individuals, and the fact that there were no comparisons among different ages and populations.
•The prevalence of cognitive impairment in long-lived people from this study was 35.2 %.•The cognitive impairment was associated with body mass index in long-lived people.•The cognitive impairment was associated with functional disability in long-lived people.•The anxiety symptoms were associated with cognitive impairment in long-lived adults.