Racial and ethnic differences in neuropsychiatric symptoms and progression to incident cognitive impairment among community‐dwelling participants

Abstract

INTRODUCTIONNeuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are a risk factor for dementia; however, their prevalence and severity among ethnoracial groups are poorly understood.METHODSWe used data from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC) (n = 6958; ≥50 years old). Cognitively normal participants at baseline, without any NPS or dementia diagnosis, had at least one follow‐up. Survival analyses assessed the hazard ratio for 12 NPS models and progression to cognitive impairment. Propensity score weighting (PSW) matched participants on age, sex, education, and race/ethnicity.RESULTSAll 12 NPS were significantly associated with progression to cognitive impairment. In the PSW models, compared to whites, Black/African Americans were more likely to progress to cognitive impairment across all 12 NPS models, followed by Hispanic, and then Asian participants.DISCUSSIONPSW minimized selection bias to provide robust risk estimates. There is a higher risk of progressing to cognitive impairment for ethnoracial groups with NPS. Tailored screening of NPS and cognitive impairment should incorporate patient and caregiver reports.

Depressive symptoms and cognitive decline in older adults

“…The neuropsychiatric symptoms associated with MBI include decreased motivation and affective symptoms (Ismail et al, 2016) and there is considerable overlap with the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). This finding is supported by other studies that show emerging depressive symptoms over time increases the risk of cognitive decline (Babulal et al, 2023, Krell-Roesch et al, 2021 and dementia (Kaup et al, 2016, Mirza et al, 2016. The timing of onset of depressive symptoms is important.…”