Respiratory Disease Raises Cognitive Risks

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) refers to a group of diseases that cause airflow blockage and breathing-related problems. It includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and in some cases asthma.  Michelle M. Mielke, from the Mayo Clinic (Minnesota, USA), and colleagues completed an analysis involving 1,425 cognitively normal individuals ages 70 to 89 years, enrolled in the Mayo Clinic Study on Aging.   At the study’s start and every 15 months thereafter, the researchers conducted assessment with a nurse interview, neurologic examination, and neuropsychological testing. A diagnosis of COPD was confirmed via medical record review. The team then ascertained a baseline diagnosis of COPD and duration of COPD were examined as risk factors for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and MCI subtypes using statistical modeling.  Of the 1,425 participants with normal cognition at baseline, 370 developed incident MCI.  Physician-diagnosed COPD was associated with an 83% elevated likelihood of developing non-amnestic mild cognitive impairment (NA-MCI).  Further, the researchers found a dose-response relationship such that individuals with COPD duration of longer than 5 years at baseline had the greatest risk for any MCI.  Writing that:  “We have found a dose-response relationship between [Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease] duration and risk for [Mild Cognitive Impairment],” the study authors urge that: “These findings highlight the importance of COPD as a risk factor for MCI and may provide a substrate for early intervention to prevent or delay the onset and progression of MCI.”