Midlife Neuroticism and the age of onset of Alzheimer's disease

Archer, Nicola; Brown, Richard G.; Reeves, Suzanne; Nicholas, Helen; Boothby, Harry; Lovestone, Simon

doi:10.1017/s003329170800408x

Cited by 24 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…9–13 For example, higher Neuroticism has been linked to cognitive impairment or decline, 11,14 while higher Openness and Conscientiousness may be protective against decline. 10,11 Studies have reported similar findings in terms of these personality domains and risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), 9,12,13 The relationships between Extraversion, Agreeableness and cognition are less clear with one study reporting a protective role of moderate Extraversion, 14 one study reporting an association between increased Extraversion and worse cognitive functioning, 11 and no studies reporting significant findings for Agreeableness and cognition. 9–13 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some have used retrospective 9 or case-control 14 designs, or primarily Caucasian 9,12 or highly selected populations (e.g., nuns, priests). 13 Others have excluded participants based on medical status, 12 limiting generalizability to less healthy populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, studies have generally been restricted to older adults. 9,12 Studying personality as a predictor of cognitive decline in older adults can be problematic, because neurodegenerative diseases are prevalent in this population and can produce both personality change and cognitive decline. 15 Thus, it can be difficult to demonstrate compelling causal links between “pre-morbid” personality and cognitive change in older populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Personality and Cognitive Decline in the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-up Study

Hock

Lee

Bienvenu

et al. 2014

The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry

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Objective To determine the association between personality domains and 11-year cognitive decline in a sample from a population-based study. Method Data from Waves 3 (1993–1996) and 4 (2003–2004) of the Baltimore cohort of the Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) study were used for analyses. The sample included 561 adults (mean age ±SD = 45.2 ±10.78 years) who completed the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO PI-R) prior to Wave 4. Participants also completed the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and immediate and delayed word recall tests at Wave 3, and at Wave 4 10.9 ±0.6 years later. Results In models adjusted for baseline cognitive performance, demographic characteristics, medical conditions, depressive symptoms, and psychotropic medication use, each 10-point increase in Neuroticism T-scores was associated with a 0.15-point decrease in MMSE scores (B = −0.15 95% confidence interval (CI) −0.30, −0.01), whereas each 10-point increase in Conscientiousness T-scores was associated with a 0.18-point increase on the MMSE (B = 0.18, 95% CI 0.04, 0.32) and a 0.21-point increase in immediate recall (B = 0.21, 95% CI 0.003, 0.41) between baseline and follow-up. Conclusion Findings suggest that greater Neuroticism is associated with decline, and greater Conscientiousness is associated with improvement in performance on measures of general cognitive function, and memory in adults. Further studies are needed to determine the extent to which personality traits in midlife are associated with clinically significant cognitive outcomes in older adults, such as mild cognitive impairment and dementia, and to identify potential mediators of the association between personality and cognitive trajectories.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Personality and Cognitive Decline in the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-up Study

Hock

Lee

Bienvenu

et al. 2014

The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry

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“…Further, while some studies have suggested that personality traits are stable even in old age, others suggest personality changes somewhat with age but there are few studies which have focused on individuals older than 80 years. [42][43][44][45][46] Thus, while the findings were robust to potential confounding variables, the potential for reverse causality cannot be excluded. Other psychological symptoms such as anxiety were not measured and might confound our findings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Motor Function in Community-Dwelling Older Persons

Buchman¹,

Boyle²,

Wilson³

et al. 2012

American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry

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Objective-Personality traits are associated with adverse health outcomes in old age, but their association with motor function is unclear. We tested the hypothesis that neuroticism and extraversion are associated motor decline in older persons.Design-Prospective, observational cohort study. Setting-Retirement communities across metropolitan Chicago.Participants-983 older persons without dementia.Measurements-At baseline, neuroticism and extraversion were assessed and annual assessment of 18 motor measures were summarized in a composite measure.Results-Average follow-up was 5 years. Separate linear mixed-effects models controlling for age, sex and education showed that baseline levels of neuroticism and extraversion were associated with the rate of motor decline. For each 7-point (~1SD) higher neuroticism score at baseline, the average annual rate of motor decline was more than 20% faster. This amount of motor decline was associated with a 10% increased risk of death as compared to a participant with an average neuroticism score. Each 6-point (~1SD) lower extraversion score at baseline was associated with an 8% faster rate of motor decline. This amount of motor decline was associated with about 9% increased risk of death as compared to a participant with an average extraversion score. Neuroticism and extraversion were relatively independently associated with motor decline. These associations were unchanged when controlling for depressive symptoms and current health status, but were partially attenuated when controlling for late-life cognitive and social activities.Conclusions-Higher levels of neuroticism and lower levels of extraversion are associated with more rapid motor decline in old age.

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“…The lack of epidemiological studies on the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases in psychiatric patients, in particular in patients with personality disorders, suggests to explore this possible relationship in future studies. The majority of studies assessing the relationship between adult personality and the development of dementia adopted personality inventories not developed within a clinical approach (see for example [21,22]) Only two studies investigated the relationship between personality disorders and the development of dementia with a focus on personality disorders: a study reported that the development of Alzheimer's disease was particularly associated with Cluster A personality disorder traits (paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal symptoms) in adulthood [23], while another study reported that traits of passivity, avoidance, alexithymia and obsessivity were associated to the subsequent development of a dementia [24]. Paradoxically, in this study the prevalence of narcissistic features was higher in controls than in patients that developed a dementia.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Narcissistic Personality Disorder to Frontotemporal Dementia: A Case Report

Poletti

Bonuccelli

2011

Behavioural Neurology

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Abstract. Premorbid personality characteristics could have a pathoplastic effect on behavioral symptoms and personality changes related to neurodegenerative diseases. Patients with personality disorders, in particular of the dramatic cluster, may present functional frontolimbic abnormalities. May these neurobiological vulnerabilities linked to a premorbid personality disorder predispose or represent a risk factor to subsequently develop a neurodegenerative disorder? Are subjects with personality disorders more at risk to develop a dementia than mentally healthy subjects? This topic is discussed presenting the clinical case of a patient who suffered of a probable Narcissistic Personality Disorder and subsequently developed a clinically diagnosed Frontotemporal Dementia.

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Midlife Neuroticism and the age of onset of Alzheimer's disease

Abstract: This finding and its potential mechanism warrant further investigation.

Cited by 24 publications

References 42 publications

Personality and Cognitive Decline in the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-up Study

Personality and Cognitive Decline in the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-up Study

Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Motor Function in Community-Dwelling Older Persons

From Narcissistic Personality Disorder to Frontotemporal Dementia: A Case Report

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