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FRIDAY, Aug. 24, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Area-level deprivation is an independent risk factor for cognitive dysfunction in older adults, according to a study published in the July issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Adrian McCann, Ph.D., from Ulster University in the United Kingdom, and colleagues evaluated the relationship between area-level deprivation and risk of cognitive dysfunction using data from the Trinity, Ulster, and Department of Agriculture study from 2008 to 2012. The study involved 5,186 community-dwelling adults with a mean age of 74 and without dementia. Geo-referenced, address-based information was used to map and link participants to official socioeconomic indicators of deprivation.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that approximately one-quarter of the cohort resided within the most deprived districts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. There was an association between greater area-level deprivation and significantly lower Mini-Mental State Examination scores. Greater area-level deprivation was also associated with fewer years of formal education; greater anxiety, depression, smoking, alcohol use, and obesity; higher blood pressure; and diabetes risk. Area deprivation was associated with significantly higher risk of cognitive dysfunction (odds ratio, 1.4 for most versus least deprived) after adjustment for relevant covariates.<\/p>\n
“Adults living in areas of greatest socioeconomic deprivation may benefit from targeted strategies aimed at improving modifiable risk factors for dementia,” the authors write.<\/p>\n
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