Alzheimer’s Disease & Dementia

Biography

Biography: Teresa Juarez-Cedill

Abstract

Objective: We examine the patterns of cognitive functioning in individuals diagnosed with dementia, diabetes, and depression as compared with dementia plus diabetes, or dementia plus depression and healthy controls. Methods: 207 participants with dementia, 83 with Alzheimer’s disease, 66 vascular dementia and 58 mixed dementia were included. All subjects underwent global neuropsychological assessment via the Mini-Mental State Examination, and assessment for depressive symptoms via the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Diabetes diagnoses were confi rmed by the medical examination Results:A mixed-eff ects repeated measures analysis of covariance indicated a signifi cant diff erence in cognitive functioning between the study groups. Our results showed that patients with diagnosis of dementia and depression showed greater cognitive dysfunction compared to controls, but to a lesser degree in patients with comorbid dementia diabetes. Conclusions: Th ese results suggest that dementia, when combined with depression or diabetes mellitus, adversely aff ects cognitive performance.