Publications by authors named "Lipnicki D"
Article Synopsis
- Poststroke cognitive impairment is common, but the exact changes in cognitive function following a first stroke compared to pre-stroke levels are not fully understood.
- The study aimed to track cognitive performance over time in stroke survivors versus individuals without strokes, using data from 14 international cohorts of older adults.
- Results showed that incident stroke led to a significant immediate drop in overall cognitive skills and accelerated decline in cognitive abilities over time.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how cardiometabolic multimorbidity (CMM) and depression affect cognitive function in older adults, aiming to understand their individual and combined impacts.
- It harmonizes data from 14 international cohort studies and utilizes various scales to assess CMM and depression among participants who did not have dementia at the start of the study.
- Findings include the analysis of over 30,000 older adults, revealing that both CMM and depression are linked to cognitive decline, with further validation through additional studies across different settings.
Article Synopsis
- Previous studies suggest that using antihypertensive medication in older adults may lower the overall risk of dementia, but the effects on different types of dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s disease (AD), are still uncertain.
- This research analyzed data from over 31,000 participants across multiple countries, focusing on how history of hypertension and blood pressure levels impact the risk of developing AD and non-AD types of dementia.
- The findings indicated that untreated hypertension significantly increases the risk of developing AD and non-AD dementia compared to healthy individuals, while treated hypertension showed a similar risk for non-AD but not a significant difference between treated and untreated groups.
Article Synopsis
- A study involving 7,801 older adults examined the connection between fruit and vegetable consumption and the development of depression, finding that higher fruit intake was linked to a lower risk of depression.
- Over a follow-up period of 3 to 9 years, 21% of participants developed depression, with fruit intake showing a significant protective effect, while vegetable intake did not show a notable association.
- The authors noted limitations due to varied measurement methods and the relatively modest sample size, suggesting further research is needed on fruit and vegetable consumption in larger, more standardized studies among older adults in low- and middle-income countries.
Introduction: The LIfestyle for BRAin Health (LIBRA) index yields a dementia risk score based on modifiable lifestyle factors and is validated in Western samples. We investigated whether the association between LIBRA scores and incident dementia is moderated by geographical location or sociodemographic characteristics.
Methods: We combined data from 21 prospective cohorts across six continents (N = 31,680) and conducted cohort-specific Cox proportional hazard regression analyses in a two-step individual participant data meta-analysis.
Introduction: White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are an important imaging marker for cerebral small vessel diseases, but their risk factors and cognitive associations have not been well documented in populations of different ethnicities and/or from different geographical regions.
Methods: We investigated how WMHs were associated with vascular risk factors and cognition in both Whites and Asians, using data from five population-based cohorts of non-demented older individuals from Australia, Singapore, South Korea, and Sweden ( = 1946). WMH volumes (whole brain, periventricular, and deep) were quantified with UBO Detector and harmonized using the ComBat model.
Importance: The utility of antihypertensives and ideal blood pressure (BP) for dementia prevention in late life remains unclear and highly contested.
Objectives: To assess the associations of hypertension history, antihypertensive use, and baseline measured BP in late life (age >60 years) with dementia and the moderating factors of age, sex, and racial group.
Data Source And Study Selection: Longitudinal, population-based studies of aging participating in the Cohort Studies of Memory in an International Consortium (COSMIC) group were included.
Introduction: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are an important imaging marker for cerebral small vessel diseases, but their risk factors and cognitive associations have not been well-documented in populations of different ethnicities and/or from different geographical regions.
Method: Magnetic resonance imaging data of five population-based cohorts of non-demented older individuals from Australia, Singapore, South Korea, and Sweden (N = 1,946) were examined for WMH and their associations with vascular risk factors and cognition.
Result: Factors associated with larger whole brain WMH volumes included diabetes, hypertension, stroke, current smoking, body mass index, higher alcohol intake and insufficient physical activity.
Objectives: Olfactory dysfunction and depression are common in later life, and both have been presented as risk factors for dementia. Our purpose was to investigate the associations between these two risk factors and determine if they had an additive effect on dementia risk.
Design: Olfactory function was assessed using the Brief Smell Identification Test (BSIT), and depression was classified using a combination of the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) score and current antidepressant use.
Article Synopsis
- Parental history of dementia, especially from the mother, significantly increases the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease in offspring.
- A study involving over 17,000 older adults showed that those with a maternal history of dementia had a notably higher odds ratio for dementia and Alzheimer's, while paternal history did not show the same association.
- These findings suggest that knowing a person's maternal history could help identify individuals at greater risk for Alzheimer's, potentially guiding risk stratification in clinical settings.
Article Synopsis
- Previous analyses indicated a link between social connections and cognitive health, but this study utilized individual data from a diverse international sample of over 39,000 participants to assess these impacts more comprehensively.
- Findings showed that strong social connections—both in terms of structure (like marriage and community engagement) and quality (feeling connected)—are tied to reduced risks of mild cognitive impairment, dementia, and mortality.
- Unique to Asian participants, being married or in a relationship significantly contributed to lower dementia risk, highlighting the varying importance of social factors across different cultures.
Background And Objectives: Past studies on poststroke cognitive function have focused on the average performance or change over time, but few have investigated patterns of cognitive trajectories after stroke. This project used latent class growth analysis (LCGA) to identify clusters of patients with similar patterns of cognition scores over the first-year poststroke and the extent to which long-term cognitive outcome is predicted by the clusters ("trajectory groups").
Methods: Data were sought from the Stroke and Cognition consortium.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many studies have found that there has been a lot of teacher overload. One of the additional burdens has been that they have had to teach online. In addition, when they returned to face-to-face classes, they had to follow all the hygiene rules so that the COVID-19 virus would not spread.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCorrelates of Gait Speed Among Older Adults From 6 Countries: Findings From the COSMIC Collaboration.
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci
December 2023
Background: Few studies have compared gait speed and its correlates among different ethnogeographic regions. The goals of this study were to describe usual and rapid gait speed, and identify their correlates across Australian, Asian, and African countries.
Methods: We used data from 6 population-based cohorts of adults aged 65+ from 6 countries and 3 continents (N = 6 472), with samples ranging from 231 to 1 913.
Introduction: Sex differences in dementia risk, and risk factor (RF) associations with dementia, remain uncertain across diverse ethno-regional groups.
Methods: A total of 29,850 participants (58% women) from 21 cohorts across six continents were included in an individual participant data meta-analysis. Sex-specific hazard ratios (HRs), and women-to-men ratio of hazard ratios (RHRs) for associations between RFs and all-cause dementia were derived from mixed-effect Cox models.
Objective: There is growing evidence for an association between anxiety and an increased risk of dementia, but it is not clear whether anxiety is a risk factor or a prodromic symptom. In this study, we investigated if clinically significant anxiety increases the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD) up to 10 years later.
Methods: We used data from the longitudinal Zaragoza Dementia and Depression (ZARADEMP) Project.
Introduction: There are limited data on prevalence of dementia in centenarians and near-centenarians (C/NC), its determinants, and whether the risk of dementia continues to rise beyond 100.
Methods: Participant-level data were obtained from 18 community-based studies (N = 4427) in 11 countries that included individuals ≥95 years. A harmonization protocol was applied to cognitive and functional impairments, and a meta-analysis was performed.
Article Synopsis
- Understanding dementia requires data from various global sources, focusing on different ethnic and regional groups to capture a comprehensive picture of the issue.
- The analysis of this data is complicated by methodological differences, necessitating harmonization to ensure comparability and accuracy in research findings.
- The discussion emphasizes both the advantages and challenges of harmonization, particularly with neuropsychological tests and neuroimaging data, while providing examples from current research initiatives.
Article Synopsis
- Poor social connections, such as small social networks and feelings of loneliness, are linked to cognitive decline and this study investigates their impact on cognitive health over time while considering sex differences.
- The researchers analyzed data from 13 global longitudinal studies, focusing on individuals without dementia at baseline, and assessed the relationship between social connections and changes in cognitive performance across various domains.
- The findings suggest that stronger social connections can positively influence cognitive health, particularly in relation to maintaining cognitive function as people age.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to analyze the relationship between alcohol use and the risk of dementia, including data from low- and middle-income countries, using a meta-analysis of 15 international cohort studies.
- The research included nearly 25,000 older adults over 60 years old and found that light to moderate alcohol consumption was associated with a lower risk of developing dementia compared to abstaining entirely.
- Results showed that moderate drinkers had a reduced dementia risk, while lifetime abstainers and former drinkers showed no significant differences, and variations in findings existed across different continents.
Article Synopsis
- Physical activity appears to help delay the onset of dementia, but the specific amount and duration needed are not fully established.
- A study analyzing data from nearly 12,000 older adults found that engaging in 3.1 to 6.0 hours of physical activity per week significantly lowers dementia risk.
- The findings suggest that people may benefit from 9.1 to 18.0 MET-hours of activity weekly, but beyond this threshold, further activity does not significantly decrease risk.
Background: Education and occupational complexity are main sources of mental engagement during early life and adulthood respectively, but research findings are not conclusive regarding protective effects of these factors against late-life dementia.
Objective: This project aimed to examine the unique contributions of education and occupational complexity to incident dementia, and to assess the mediating effects of occupational complexity on the association between education and dementia across diverse cohorts.
Method: We used data from 10,195 participants (median baseline age = 74.
Background: Poststroke cognitive impairment is common, but the trajectory and magnitude of cognitive decline after stroke is unclear. We examined the course and determinants of cognitive change after stroke using individual participant data from the Stroke and Cognition Consortium.
Methods: Nine longitudinal hospital-based cohorts from 7 countries were included.
The Alzheimer's Association International Conference held its sixth Satellite Symposium in Sydney, Australia in 2019, highlighting the leadership of Australian researchers in advancing the understanding of and treatment developments for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other dementias. This leadership includes the Australian Imaging, Biomarker, and Lifestyle Flagship Study of Ageing (AIBL), which has fueled the identification and development of many biomarkers and novel therapeutics. Two multimodal lifestyle intervention studies have been launched in Australia; and Australian researchers have played leadership roles in other global studies in diverse populations.
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