Where One Lives Impacts Dementia Risk
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, Dec. 13, 2024 -- Neighborhood disadvantage is more strongly associated with measures of cardiometabolic health and cognition in individuals without mild cognitive impairment (MCI) compared to those with MCI, according to a study published online Dec. 6 in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring.
Sudarshan Krishnamurthy, from the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and colleagues investigated the relationship between neighborhood disadvantage with measures of cardiometabolic health and cognition. Analysis included 537 adults (aged >55 years) participating in the Wake Forest Alzheimer's Disease Research Center Healthy Brain Study (between 2016 and 2021); 39.3 percent had MCI.
The researchers found that Area Deprivation Index (ADI) was positively associated with blood pressure and cardiometabolic index (CMI). There was a negative association between ADI and global and Preclinical Alzheimer's Cognitive Composite scores in cognitively unimpaired individuals. In individuals with MCI, ADI was only positively associated with hemoglobin A1c.
"Neighborhood disadvantage is associated more strongly with measures of cardiometabolic health and cognition among cognitively unimpaired individuals rather than MCI," the authors write. "These findings demonstrate a need for structural solutions to address social determinants of health in an attempt to reduce cardiometabolic and cognitive risks."
One author disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted December 2024
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