Publications

100 Publications visible to you, out of a total of 100

Abstract (Expand)

BACKGROUND: Subjective cognitive decline (SCD), i.e., the self-perceived feeling of worsening cognitive function, may be the first notable syndrome of preclinical Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. However, not all individuals with SCD progress. Stability of SCD, i.e., repeated reports of SCD, could contribute to identify individuals at risk, as stable SCD may more likely reflect the continuous neurodegenerative process of Alzheimer's and other dementias. METHODS: Cox regression analyses were used to assess the association between stability of SCD and progression to MCI and dementia in data derived from the population-based Leipzig Longitudinal Study of the Aged (LEILA75+). RESULTS: Of 453 cognitively unimpaired individuals with a mean age of 80.5 years (SD = 4.2), 139 (30.7 %) reported SCD at baseline. Over the study period (M = 4.8 years, SD = 2.2), 84 (18.5 %) individuals had stable SCD, 195 (43.1 %) unstable SCD and 174 (38.4 %) never reported SCD. Stable SCD was associated with increased risk of progression to MCI and dementia (unadjusted HR = 1.8, 95 % CI = 1.2-2.6; p < .01), whereas unstable SCD yielded a decreased progression risk (unadjusted HR = 0.5, 95 % CI = 0.4-0.7; p < .001) compared to no SCD. When adjusted for baseline cognitive functioning, progression risk in individuals with stable SCD was significantly increased in comparison to individuals with unstable SCD, but not compared to individuals without SCD. CONCLUSIONS: Our results, though preliminary, suggest that stable SCD, i.e., repeated reports of SCD, may yield an increased risk of progression to MCI and dementia compared to unstable SCD. Baseline cognitive scores, though within a normal range, seem to be a driver of progression in stable SCD. Future research is warranted to investigate whether stability could hold as a SCD research feature.

Authors: S. Roehr, A. Villringer, M. C. Angermeyer, T. Luck, S. G. Riedel-Heller

Date Published: 4th Nov 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

Human Diseases: dementia, Alzheimer's disease

Abstract (Expand)

INTRODUCTION: Previous studies have demonstrated that an overall high level of mental work demands decreased dementia risk. In our study, we investigated whether this effect is driven by specific mental work demands and whether it is exposure dependent. METHODS: Patients aged 75+ years were recruited from general practitioners and participated in up to seven assessment waves (every 1.5 years) of the longitudinal AgeCoDe study. Analyses of the impact of specific mental work demands on dementia risk were carried out via multivariate regression modeling (n = 2315). RESULTS: We observed a significantly lower dementia risk in individuals with a higher level of "information processing" (HR, 0.888), "pattern detection" (HR, 0.878), "mathematics" (HR, 0.878), and "creativity" (HR, 0.878). Yet, exposure-dependent effects were only significant for "information processing" and "pattern detection." DISCUSSION: Our longitudinal observations suggest that dementia risk may be reduced by some but not all types of mental work demands.

Authors: F. S. Then, T. Luck, K. Heser, A. Ernst, T. Posselt, B. Wiese, S. Mamone, C. Brettschneider, H. H. Konig, S. Weyerer, J. Werle, E. Mosch, H. Bickel, A. Fuchs, M. Pentzek, W. Maier, M. Scherer, M. Wagner, S. G. Riedel-Heller

Date Published: 30th Oct 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

Human Diseases: dementia

Abstract (Expand)

Sex hormones fluctuate during the menstrual cycle. Evidence from animal studies suggests similar subtle fluctuations in hippocampal structure, predominantly linked to estrogen. Hippocampal abnormalities have been observed in several neuropsychiatric pathologies with prominent sexual dimorphism. Yet, the potential impact of subtle sex-hormonal fluctuations on human hippocampal structure in health is unclear. We tested the feasibility of longitudinal neuroimaging in conjunction with rigorous menstrual cycle monitoring to evaluate potential changes in hippocampal microstructure associated with physiological sex-hormonal changes. Thirty longitudinal diffusion weighted imaging scans of a single healthy female subject were acquired across two full menstrual cycles. We calculated hippocampal fractional anisotropy (FA), a measure sensitive to changes in microstructural integrity, and investigated potential correlations with estrogen. We observed a significant positive correlation between FA values and estrogen in the hippocampus bilaterally, revealing a peak in FA closely paralleling ovulation. This exploratory, single-subject study demonstrates the feasibility of a longitudinal DWI scanning protocol across the menstrual cycle and is the first to link subtle endogenous hormonal fluctuations to changes in FA in vivo. In light of recent attempts to neurally phenotype single humans, our findings highlight menstrual cycle monitoring in parallel with highly sampled individual neuroimaging data to address fundamental questions about the dynamics of plasticity in the adult brain.

Authors: C. Barth, C. J. Steele, K. Mueller, V. P. Rekkas, K. Arelin, A. Pampel, I. Burmann, J. Kratzsch, A. Villringer, J. Sacher

Date Published: 7th Oct 2016

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

BACKGROUND: It is unknown whether longitudinal stability versus instability in subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is a modifying factor of the association between SCD and risk of incident Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia. OBJECTIVE: We tested the modifying role of temporal stability of the SCD report on AD dementia risk in cognitively normal elderly individuals. METHODS: We analyzed data of 1,990 cognitively normal participants from the longitudinal AgeCoDe Study. We assessed SCD with/without associated worries both at baseline and first follow-up 18 months later. Participants were then classified either as (a) Controls (CO, with no SCD at both baseline and follow-up 1, n = 613), (b) inconsistent SCD (with SCD reported only at baseline or at follow-up 1, n = 637), (c) consistent SCD but without/or with inconsistent worries (n = 610) or (d) consistent SCD with worries (n = 130). We estimated incident AD dementia risk over up to 6 years for each group with Cox-Proportional Hazard Regression analyses adjusted for age, gender, education, ApoE4 status, and depression. RESULTS: Compared to CO, inconsistent SCD was not associated with increased risk of incident AD dementia. In contrast, risk was doubled in the group of consistent SCD without/ with inconsistent worries, and almost 4-fold in the group of consistent SCD with worries. These results could be replicated when using follow-up 1 to follow-up 2 response patterns for group definition. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that longitudinal stability versus instability is an important modifying factor of the association between SCD and AD dementia risk. Worrisome SCD that is also consistently reported over time is associated with greatly increased risk of AD dementia.

Authors: S. Wolfsgruber, L. Kleineidam, M. Wagner, E. Mosch, H. Bickel, D. Lupsilonhmann, A. Ernst, B. Wiese, S. Steinmann, H. H. Konig, C. Brettschneider, T. Luck, J. Stein, S. Weyerer, J. Werle, M. Pentzek, A. Fuchs, W. Maier, M. Scherer, S. G. Riedel-Heller, F. Jessen

Date Published: 4th Oct 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

Human Diseases: dementia, Alzheimer's disease

Abstract (Expand)

Objectives: Previous studies have shown that individuals with poor social relationships have an increased risk for dementia. Dementia risk, however, can also be positively influenced by lifestyle factors. One such very important factor is high mental demands at work, in particular as the work environment affects a very long lifetime period. Thus, our objective was to investigate whether the cognitive functioning of socially isolated individuals may profit from high mental work demands. Methods: Analyses were based on n = 10,000 participants (aged 40 – 80 years) of the population-based German LIFE-Adult-Study. All participants underwent medical examinations and filled out standardized questionnaires. Cognitive functioning was assessed via the Verbal Fluency Test (VFT) and the Trail-Making Test (TMT). Social relationships were assessed via the Lubben Social Network Scale (LSNS-6). The interaction between social isolation and mental demands on cognitive functioning was analyzed via multivariate regression analyses. Results: The difference in cognitive functioning between high and low mental work demand conditions was larger in socially isolated individuals (VFT: 2.7 words, TMT-B: 26 seconds) compared to socially well integrated individuals (VFT: 2.1 words, TMT-B: 9 seconds). Multivariate regression analyses – adjusted for age, gender, and education – indicated that both mental work demands as well as social relationships are significantly associated with the level of cognitive functioning (p < 0.001). Results also suggest interaction effects indicating a stronger impact of mental work demands on cognitive functioning in socially isolated individuals than in well integrated individuals. Conclusion: The findings imply that individuals with poor social relationships may particularly benefit from high mental work demands regarding their risk for dementia. The level of mental demands at work could therefore be an important target for tailored preventative approaches.

Authors: F. S. Then, M. L. Schroeter, V. Witte, C. Engel, M. Loeffler, J. Thiery, A. Villringer, T. Luck, S. G. Riedel-Heller

Date Published: 15th Sep 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

Abstract (Expand)

OBJECTIVES: Although patients with depression often suffer from sleep disturbances, most of them are not sleepy. Upregulation of brain arousal has been proposed as pathophysiological mechanism explaining sleep disturbances, inner tension, autonomic hyperarousal and anhedonia in depression. The aim of the current study was to examine the association between night-time sleep disturbances and brain arousal regulation the next day in depressed versus non-depressed subjects. METHODS: Twenty-eight elderly subjects (21 female; age = 70.5 +/- 4.4 years) with depressive syndromes without psychotropic medication, and 28 controls (22 female; age = 70.9 +/- 4.5 years), underwent a 15-min resting electroencephalogram; the Vigilance Algorithm Leipzig (VIGALL 2.1) provided an objective measure of brain arousal regulation. Sleep disturbances were assessed by a validated and self-rated sleep questionnaire. RESULTS: In the depressive group, but not in controls, more sleep disturbances were associated with a higher brain arousal stability score (high score corresponds to upregulation) the next day (sleep onset latency: rs = 0.69, P < .0001; sleep quality: rs = -0.59, P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The data confirm the hypothesis that in persons with depressive syndromes sleep disturbances are related to upregulation of brain arousal the next day. This finding is in line with the concept that dysregulation of brain arousal is a central pathophysiological aspect in depression.

Authors: C. Ulke, C. Sander, P. Jawinski, N. Mauche, J. Huang, J. Spada, D. Wittekind, R. Mergl, T. Luck, S. Riedel-Heller, T. Hensch, U. Hegerl

Date Published: 25th Aug 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

Human Diseases: mental depression

Abstract (Expand)

In the NORRE study (EHJCVI (2014) 15, 680 – 690) normal values determined by echocardiography were published in healthy subjects (n = 734) with mean age of 46+13 years (range: 20 – 78). Left ventricular (LV)-volumes showed good correlations to the participants' (pts') age. LV-volumes were decreased and LV ejection fraction (EF) was increased according to the increase of the pts' age. A significant correlation between age and LV-mass was only found in women. Left atrial (LA)-volumes did not significantly change with age. Parameters of diastolic function showed a strong age-dependency (decrease of E/A-ratio; increase of E/E'-ratio). In the present LIFE-Adult analysis echocardiographic parameters were compared to the NORRE data. In 773 pts (326 males and 447 females; median age: 51 years), standardised transthoracic echocardiography was performed according to the national and international recommendations. The following parameters were analysed: LV- and LA-volume analyses by M-Mode measurements and 2D-LV planimetry, maximum E-and A-velocity, E/A-ratio and E/E'-ratio. The cohort was divided in age related subcohorts between 20 – 40, 41 – 50 and 51 – 60 years. Mean LV-diameter was 54 ± 5 mm (males) and 49 ± 4 mm (females). There was no age-dependency in males, but a tendency of LV-diameter increase in females. Mean LA diameter was 39 ± 4 mm in males and 35 ± 4 mm in females. Mean LA-diameter-index was 20 ± 2 mm/m2 (males) and 20 ± 3 mm/m2 (females) showing Age-dependency of an increasing LA-diameter in males and females. LV mass-index was 100 ± 20 g/m2 (males) and 83 ± 19 g/m2 (females) showing a tendency of increasing LV mass-index with age in males and females. Subsequently, septal and posterior wall thickness slightly increases with age. No differences of LVEF with increase of the pts' age could be observed. E/A-ratio was decreased and E/E'-ratio was increased with increase of the pts' age. The analysis of the echocardiographic parameters of the LIFE-Adult trial showed differences of the age-dependency in comparison to the NORRE data.

Authors: S. Stöbe, A. Hagendorff, S. Zeynalova, S. Tautenhahn, K. Wirkner, G. Farese, D. Jurisch, D. Pfeiffer, M. Loeffler

Date Published: 18th Aug 2016

Publication Type: Journal article

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