A case⁃control study on psychosocial risk factors for mild cognitive impairment in elders

Abstract

Objective To investigate the psychosocial risk factors for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in old people. Methods A case⁃control study was conducted in MCI and normal cognition elders. One hundred and sixty ⁃ five MCI elderly patients and 508 normal cognition elders were selected. The subjects' social demography basic data (gender, age, education level), leisure activities and personal hobby (penmanship, gardening, reading, writing article, autobiography or memoirs, etc.), social activities and special experience (the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, serious psychic trauma), sleeping and affection, histories of chronic disease were investigated. SPSS 12.0 statistics software was used to analyse data. Univariate analysis were conducted by Chi ⁃ square test, t test, Fisher exact test, and multivariate analysis were conducted by using Logistic regression model. Results There were 165 MCI patients (MCI group) and 508 normal cognition old people (NC group) investigated. The mean age in MCI group and NC group was 77.07 ± 0.59 years old and 76.91 ± 0.58 years old, respectively. There was no significant difference in gender among two groups (P > 0.05). Univariate analysis showed that age, education level, social participation, exercises, penmanship and writing article, autobiography or memoirs had significant differences between MCI and NC group (P < 0.05, for all), but the difference of other factors was not significant between both groups (P > 0.05, for all). Multivariate analysis confirmed that age, education level, writing article, autobiography or memoirs, exercises, and social participation presented significant positive correlation with MCI (P < 0.05, for all) and ORs (95% CI) were 1.448 (1.059-1.981）, 0.513 (0.346-0.761), 0.648 (0.447-0.939), 0.570 (0.357-0.911) and 0.435 (0.205-0.922), respectively. Conclusion Age, education level, social activities, exercises and writing article, autobiography or memoirs are significantly related to senile MCI. Age is an independent risk factor for MCI, while high education level, social participation, exercises and writing article, autobiography or memoirs seem to be protective factors for MCI. Therefore, appropriate early interventions may be essential to prevent and delay the development of senile cognitive impairment.

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2010.02.013