Relationship between Cognitive Reserve and Cognitive Impairment in Autonomous and Institutionalized Older Adults

Abstract

It is necessary to determine which variables help prevent the presence of decline or deterioration during the aging process as a function of advancing age. This research analyses the relations between cognitive reserve (CR) and cognitive impairment in 300 individuals. It also aims to confirm the influence of different variables (gender, age, level of studies and institutionalization) in CR and in deterioration in a population of older adults. The results indicate that people with higher CR present less deterioration. Regarding the role of the sociodemographic variables in the level of deterioration and CR, there are no differences between men and women, but there are differences in the variables age, level of studies and institutionalization, in such a way that the older age the greater the cognitive deterioration, the higher the level of studies, the more RC and less deterioration and it was found that the non-institutionalized people present less deterioration and greater CR. It is affirmed that two people with similar clinical characteristics may present different levels of pathology, being the CR the explanation of this fact. The results obtained allow us to affirm that the measurement of CR is considered an essential variable for the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases.

Cognitive reserve estimated with a life experience questionnaire outperforms education in predicting performance on MoCA: Italian normative data

“…The best-fitting model included Age and Sex together with CRI and Education. The variable Age exerted, as expected, a significant effect on MoCA scores, which were lower as Age increased, in line with previous literature (e.g., Malek-Ahmadi et al, 2018;Wöbbeking-Sánchez et al, 2020). The variable Sex showed a significant effect on cognitive performance, according to previous findings (e.g., Reilly et al, 2016) and it was an important variable we accounted for both cut-offs and exploratory GAM analyses.…”

Cognitive reserve estimated with a life experience questionnaire outperforms education in predicting performance on MoCA: Italian normative data

“…The best-tting model included Age and Sex together with CRI and Education. The variable Age exerted, as expected, a signi cant effect on MoCA scores, which were lower as Age increased, in line with previous literature (e.g., Malek-Ahmadi, O'Connor, Scho eld, Coon, & Zamrini, 2018;Wöbbeking-Sánchez, Bonete-López, Cabaco, Urchaga-Litago, & Afonso, 2020). Sex was included as a further demographic characteristic that can predict different outcomes in cognitive performance (e.g., Reilly et al, 2016).…”

Physical Activity and Life Satisfaction: An Empirical Study in a Population of Senior Citizens

“…Results that suggest that the greater the age, the lower the quality of the dimensions of physical health, psychology, and social relationships. Although the important modulating role played by cognitive reserves in mitigating cognitive impairment should be considered ( Wöbbeking et al, 2020 ).…”