Fatores associados a comprometimento cognitivo e demência em uma amostra comunitária de idosos analfabetos com 75+ anos: estudo Pietà

Abstract

A higher educational attainment constitutes a protective factor against cognitive decline in the elderly. Nevertheless, the elements underpinning this association are yet not fully understood. Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to compare cognitively impaired illiterate elderly subjects with cognitively preserved counterparts, according to demographics, comorbidities, lifetime habits and APOE-4 genotype. Methods: This is a cross sectional analysis of the illiterate subset of participants (n=174) from the Pietà study, a community-based survey of successful brain aging conducted in Caeté (MG), Brazil. Subjects were categorized into three diagnostic groups: cognitively normal (CN), cognitive impairment no-dementia (CIND) and dementia. The groups were then compared according to selected variables. Results: Subjects with dementia were older and had an increased prevalence of reported stroke or transient ischemic attack. The three groups were not different in relation to demographics, prevalence of comorbidities, socioeconomic level, previous occupation profile and APOE-4 genotype frequency. Qualitatively evaluated lifetime habits, such as alcohol drinking, smoking and physical activity engagement were also similar among groups. Conclusion: We found no associations between cognitive impairment/dementia and the evaluated variables in this community-based sample of illiterate elderly.