Social Activities and Risk of Dementia in Community-Dwelling Older People: Gender-Specific Findings From a Prospective Cohort Study

Htet Lin Htun, Achamyeleh Birhanu Teshale, Alice J Owen, Joanne Ryan, Robyn L Woods, Suzanne G Orchard, André Hajek, Thom Lysen, Raj C Shah, Trevor T-J Chong, Kerry M Sheets, Johanna Joyce, Anne M Murray, Rosanne Freak-Poli and Rodlescia S Sneed

The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 2024, vol. 79, issue 5, 510-193

Abstract: ObjectivesThis study examines the gender-specific associations between a wide range of social activities and dementia risk.MethodsA prospective cohort study was conducted involving community-dwelling older Australians (≥70 years) without significant cognitive impairment at enrolment. During the first year of enrolment, we assessed 25 self-reported social activities covering various aspects, including support from relatives and friends, community participation, social interactions with surroundings, and loneliness. Dementia diagnosis followed DSM-IV criteria, adjudicated by an international expert panel. To estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for associations between social activities and dementia, we performed Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for age, educational attainment, baseline global cognition, and depressive symptoms.ResultsAmong 9,936 participants who completed all social activity questionnaires (median [IQR] age: 73.4 [71.6–77.1] years; 47.4% men), dementia was diagnosed in 3.8% of men (n = 181/4,705) and 2.6% of women (n = 138/5,231) over a median 6.4 years (IQR: 5.3–7.6, range: 0.2–10.1) follow-up. Gender-specific relationships emerged: caregiving for a person with illness/disability in women (HR: 0.65, 95% CI: 0.42–0.99), and having ≥9 relatives feeling close to call for help in men (HR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.33–0.96; reference

Keywords: Cohort studies; Social determinants of health; Social isolation; Social participation; Social support (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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