Importance: The prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia are projected to rise dramatically during the next 40 years, and strategies for maintaining cognitive function with age are critically needed. Physical or mental activity alone result in relatively small, domain-specific improvements in cognitive function in older adults; combined interventions may have more global effects.; Objective: To […]
We performed a pilot randomized, controlled trial of intensive, computer-based cognitive training in 47 subjects with mild cognitive impairment. The intervention group performed exercises specifically designed to improve auditory processing speed and accuracy for 100 min/d, 5 d/wk for 6 weeks; the control group performed more passive computer activities (reading, listening, visuospatial game) for similar […]
Objectives: To investigate maintenance of training effects of a novel brain plasticity-based computerized cognitive training program in older adults after a 3-month no-contact period.; Design: Multisite, randomized, controlled, double-blind trial with two treatment groups.; Setting: Communities in northern and southern California and Minnesota.; Participants: Four hundred eighty-seven community-dwelling adults aged 65 and older without diagnosis […]
Background: Hypertension (HTN) is a risk factor for dementia, and animal studies suggest that centrally active angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors (those that cross the blood-brain barrier) may protect against dementia beyond HTN control.; Methods: Participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Substudy with treated HTN and no diagnosis of congestive heart failure (n = 1054; […]
Objective: To determine how physical activity at various ages over the life course is associated with cognitive impairment in late life.; Design: Cross-sectional study.; Setting: Four U.S. sites.; Participants: Nine thousand three hundred forty-four women aged 65 and older (mean 71.6) who self-reported teenage, age 30, age 50, and late-life physical activity.; Measurements: Logistic regression […]
Objectives: To determine which older adults tend to receive potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs), how this may differ according to cognitive status, and how the trajectories of PIM use change over time. Design: Ten-year longitudinal cohort study. Setting: Three clinical sites in the United States. Participants: One thousand four hundred eighty-four community-dwelling women aged 75 and […]