Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government
Veterans Benefits and Health Care About VA Find a VA Location

VA Health Systems Research

Go to the VA ORD website
Go to the QUERI website

HSR&D Citation Abstract

Search | Search by Center | Search by Source | Keywords in Title

Anxiety symptoms and risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment in the oldest old women.

Kassem AM, Ganguli M, Yaffe K, Hanlon JT, Lopez OL, Wilson JW, Ensrud K, Cauley JA, Study of Osteoporotic Fractures (SOF) Research Group. Anxiety symptoms and risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment in the oldest old women. Aging & mental health. 2018 Apr 1; 22(4):474-482.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions


Abstract:

OBJECTIVES: Research is limited and findings conflict regarding anxiety as a predictor of future cognitive decline in the oldest old persons. We examined the relationship between levels of and changes in anxiety symptoms, and subsequent dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in the oldest old women. METHOD: We conducted secondary analyses of data collected from 1425 community-dwelling women (mean age = 82.8, SD ±3.1 years) followed on average for five years. The Goldberg Anxiety Scale was used to assess anxiety symptoms at baseline, and an expert clinical panel adjudicated dementia and MCI at follow-up. Participants with probable cognitive impairment at baseline were excluded. RESULTS: At baseline, 190 (13%) women had moderate/severe anxiety symptoms and 403 (28%) had mild anxiety symptoms. Compared with those with no anxiety symptoms at baseline, women with mild anxiety symptoms were more likely to develop dementia at follow-up (multivariable-adjusted odds ratio = 1.66, 95% confidence interval 1.12-2.45). No significant association was observed between anxiety symptoms and MCI. CONCLUSION: In the oldest old women, our findings suggest that mild anxiety symptoms may predict future risk of dementia, but not MCI. Future studies should explore potential biological mechanisms underlying associations of anxiety with cognitive impairment.




Questions about the HSR website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.