Subjective memory complaints associated with depression and cognitive impairment in the elderly: A systematic review

Abstract

The aging process can be accompanied by a slight decline in cognitive functioning, and subjective memory complaints (SMC) appear to be common in the elderly population.ObjectiveTo determine whether SMC is associated with cognitive loss or depression and can predict dementia.MethodsA systematic review of the literature was conducted. Articles were selected on the following databases, LILACS, SCOPUS, SCiELO, PubMed and Web of Science from August to October 2013. Article selection was based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Studies published between 2010 and 2013, written in English, Spanish or Portuguese, involving populations 65 years or older, were included. Reviews were excluded.ResultsAfter the selection, a summary of the 20 articles retrieved was carried out. Of the total articles retrieved, fifteen were cross-sectional studies and five were longitudinal studies. Most of the cross-sectional studies associated SMC with depression, objective cognitive impairment and anxiety. The emergence of dementia in people with SMC was evidenced in longitudinal studies. Albeit less frequently, SMC were also associated with reduced quality of life, impairment in Activities of Daily Living (ADL), emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms, lower hippocampal volume, amygdala volume reduction, increased activation of the left temporal, bilateral thalamus, caudate and posterior cingulate, and with the occurrence of ApoE ε4.ConclusionSMC may be associated with changes in mood and/or cognition, and its occurrence appears to increase the likelihood of dementia. In order to further our understanding of the topic, future studies should consider the recruitment of representative samples with control groups and longitudinal designs.

Analysis of life quality and prevalence of cognitive impairment, anxiety, and depressive symptoms in older adults

“…Unlike other studies (Brigola et al, 2015;Silva et al, 2014), the present study showed no relationship between depression and cognitive state, which is in agreement with the results reported by Paulo and Yassuda (2010).…”

Polypharmacy Is Associated with Lower Memory Function in African American Older Adults

“…Memory loss is a major problem in older adults [27,28], including AA older adults [27,[29][30][31]. Memory loss, which is different from dementia [32], reduces the quality of life [28], impairs disease management [33], predicts mortality [34], and predicts a wide range of undesirable health outcomes [28,35]. Memory loss is also a source of economic burden to families, health care systems, and society [36,37].…”

Alterations in structural rich-club connectivity of the precuneus are associated with depressive symptoms among individuals with subjective memory complaints

“…As mentioned above, the association between depressive symptoms and SMCs has been one of the most robust findings in scientific research (Brigola et al, 2015;Lehrner et al, 2014;Montejo Carrasco et al, 2017;Sousa et al, 2015;Zlatar, Muniz, Galasko, & Salmon, 2017). However, the neural correlates of the comorbidity between depressive symptoms and SMCs have not yet been elucidated.…”

“…In addition, individuals with SMCs as early as in middle-age have shown significant cortical thinning in several brain regions that are commonly affected in AD, including the entorhinal, posterior cingulate, and inferior parietal cortices, compared with healthy control subjects (Schultz et al, 2015). However, most previous studies related to SMCs and depression have primarily focused on the elderly (Brigola et al, 2015;Montejo Carrasco et al, 2017). Given that SMCs can arise as early as middle-age, along with the fact that management of early risk factors may mitigate further cognitive impairment (Byers & Yaffe, 2011;Hughes & Ganguli, 2009), it would be more informative and beneficial to investigate the neural mechanisms of depressive symptoms in middleaged individuals with SMCs rather than in the elderly.…”