thesis
Risk Factors for Cognitive Decline
- Publication date
- 26 November 1997
- Publisher
- Cognitive impairment is one of the major symptoms of
dementia. The main cognitive functions acc orientation to time
and place, recall and memory, attention, language, calculation,
and visual construction. Impairment of cognitive functions influences
the ability of an individual to live independently, and it diminishes
the quality of life. In addition to the consequences for an individual,
cognitive impairment imposes a major burden on the health care
system because it induces an increased risk of institutionalization and
hospitalization.
Although cognlttve impairment is a less severe disorder than dementia,
it is much more common. In a representative papu lation of
subjects over 65 years of age, the prevalence of cognitive impairment
was 15.8%, whereas the prevalence of dementia was 4.2%.' The risk of
cognitive impairment rises exponentially with age. Therefore, we may
expect an increase in the number of people with cognitive impairment
in our aging society. At present, there acc a number of medications that
can delay the progression of dementia and that can stabilize cognitive
function. However, no cure or prevention for these disorders has been
found yet. Therefore, it is important to identify modifiable risk factors
for cognitive impairment and dementia. If these risk factors can be
found, preventive intervention may become feasible.
