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Objectives: We examined whether social networks had a protective association with incidence of dementia among elderly women., Methods: We prospectively studied 2249 members of a health maintenance organization who were 78 years or older, were classified as free of dementia in 2001, and had completed at least 1 follow-up interview in 2002 through 2005. We used the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status-modified, the Telephone Dementia Questionnaire, and medical record review to assess cognitive status. We used the Lubben Social Network Scale-6 to assess social network. We estimated hazard ratios for incident dementia with Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for age at entry, education, hormone use, cognitive status scores, and health conditions., Results: We identified 268 incident cases of dementia during follow-up. Compared with women with smaller social networks, the adjusted hazard ratio for incident dementia in women with larger social networks was 0.74 (95% confidence interval=0.57, 0.97)., Conclusions: Our findings suggest that larger social networks have a protective influence on cognitive function among elderly women. Future studies should explore which aspects of social networks are associated with dementia risk and maintenance of cognitive health.

Results from epidemiologic studies of postmenopausal hormone use and dementia have been conflicting. Investigators from the Women's Health Initiative Memory Study reported that the incidence of dementia in women aged >/=65 years assigned to hormone use was increased. Here the authors report results from a prospective cohort study of 2,906 dementia-free women (1,519 hormone users and 1,387 hormone nonusers) aged > or =75 years who were recruited from a Southern California health plan in 1999 and followed through 2003. Cognitive status was assessed annually using the Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status-modified, supplemented by the Telephone Dementia Questionnaire and medical record review. The mean self-reported age at initiation of hormone use was 48.3 years for users of estrogen alone (n = 1,072) and 54.9 years for users of estrogen plus progestin (n = 447); self-reported mean durations of hormone use were 30.5 years and 23.2 years, respectively. There were 283 incident dementia cases identified during follow-up. After adjustment for age, education, and medical history, hazard ratios for incident dementia were 1.34 (95% confidence interval: 0.95, 1.89) in estrogen/progestin users and 1.23 (95% confidence interval: 0.94, 1.59) in estrogen users. These findings do not provide support for an effect of estrogen or estrogen/progestin use in preventing dementia.

Background: Brief screening tests have been developed to measure cognitive performance and dementia, yet they measure limited cognitive domains and often lack construct validity. Neuropsychological assessments, while comprehensive, are too costly and time-consuming for epidemiological studies. This study's aim was to develop a psychometrically valid telephone administered test of cognitive function in aging., Methods: Using a sequential hierarchical strategy, each stage of test development did not proceed until specified criteria were met. The 30 minute Cognitive Assessment of Later Life Status (CALLS) measure and a 2.5 hour in-person neuropsychological assessment were conducted with a randomly selected sample of 211 participants 65 years and older that included equivalent distributions of men and women from ethnically diverse populations., Results: Overall Cronbach's coefficient alpha for the CALLS test was 0.81. A principal component analysis of the CALLS tests yielded five components. The CALLS total score was significantly correlated with four neuropsychological assessment components. Older age and having a high school education or less was significantly correlated with lower CALLS total scores. Females scored better overall than males. There were no score differences based on race., Conclusion: The CALLS test is a valid measure that provides a unique opportunity to reliably and efficiently study cognitive function in large populations.

Objectives: To explore the association between hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and cognitive performance in a group of elderly women (>/=75) using a battery of well-standardized neuropsychological instruments., Design: Equivalent samples from existing cohort., Setting: Healthcare provider organization., Participants: All women enrolled were participants in an ongoing study of the association between HRT and the prevalence and incidence of dementia. Prescription records were used to establish HRT status. Fifty-eight users and 47 nonusers of HRT participated in this substudy., Measurements: Given previous reports that HRT has a positive effect on verbal memory, the California Verbal Learning Test and the Logical Memory Test were used as primary outcomes. A range of validated tests that assess other cognitive domains was also included., Results: There were no significant differences between users and nonusers of HRT on any cognitive measures., Conclusion: Given equivalent groups of users and nonusers of HRT no support was found for the hypothesis that use of HRT improves cognitive performance in older women.

Based on anecdotal reports and a few empirical studies, there is concern about the cognitive effects of cancer and its treatment effects among adults. A cross-sectional comparison of the cognitive performance of 541 elderly women who reported at least one hospitalization for cancer and 3,123 who had no reported hospitalizations for cancer was conducted. The difference between cancer survivors and those with no history of cancer on a screening test of global cognitive functioning was not significant, nor were there differences on a subtest of the global test that assesses verbal memory. Older women who report being hospitalized for cancer as adults may perform similar to women with no history of cancer on rudimentary cognitive tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

: PurposeThis cross-sectional study sought to identify diabetes accurately in a study population of 3681 women age 75 and older and to determine the association of diabetes with cognitive performance.: MethodsA previously validated test, the Telephone Interview of Cognitive Screening—Modified (TICSm) was given to assess cognitive status. A diabetes case identification database, medical record review and self-report were used to determine diabetes cases. 489 (13.3%) of the women in the study were classified with diabetes and 3192 without diabetes.: Resultst-tests and linear regression analyses determined that diabetic women had a mean TICSm score 1.4 points lower (i.e. more impaired) than non-diabetic women. Using linear regression to adjust for age, education, and vascular disease, diabetic women showed a 1.1 lower score on the TICSm. Similar adjustments were made for potential confounding variables such as depression, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), high body weight, smoking, alcohol use and exercise and diabetics again showed a 1.0 lower score.: ConclusionThis study, which utilizes highly rigorous case identification methodology, provides further evidence that diabetes is associated with significantly worse cognitive performance in the elderly. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]