Studies on the association between Alzheimer's disease and vascular risk factors: reports from China

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for 60% to 80% of all types of dementia. Both genetic and non-genetic factors may take part in the etiopathogenesis of AD. Among them, genetic factors play a decisive role in the development of AD. Gene mutations associated with AD include amyloid β-protein precursor (APP), presenilin-1 (PS-1), presenilin-2 (PS-2) and apolipoprotein Eε4 (ApoEε4) allele gene. Vascular risk factors are the most common causes in non-genetic factors, such as hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, smoking, drinking, obesity, intracranial arteriosclerosis, atrial fibrillation and cerebrovascular diseases. We selected three high-quality prospective cohort studies regarding the association of AD with vascular risk factors in Chinese population which were published in foreign journals during the past 5 years, and focused on study methods and results.

DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2015.07.004