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Serum Calcium and Cognitive Function in Old Age
Author(s) -
Schram Miranda T.,
Trompet Stella,
Kamper Adriaan M.,
De Craen Anton J. M.,
Hofman Albert,
Euser Sjoerd M.,
Breteler Monique M. B.,
Westendorp Rudi G. J.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2007.01418.x
Subject(s) - medicine , rotterdam study , cognition , psychomotor learning , population , cognitive decline , prospective cohort study , gerontology , demography , dementia , psychiatry , environmental health , disease , sociology
OBJECTIVES: To determine whether serum calcium is associated with cognitive function in elderly individuals in the general population. DESIGN: Prospective follow‐up study of two independent, population‐based cohorts. SETTING: The Rotterdam Study (median follow‐up 11 years) and the Leiden 85‐plus Study (median follow‐up 5 years). PARTICIPANTS: Three thousand nine hundred ninety‐four individuals, mean age 71, from the Rotterdam Study and 560 individuals, all aged 85, from the Leiden 85‐plus Study. MEASUREMENTS: Global cognitive function was assessed in both cohorts using the Mini‐Mental State Examination; attention, psychomotor speed, and memory function were assessed in the Leiden 85‐plus Study only. Linear regression and linear mixed models were used for statistical analyses. RESULTS: In the Rotterdam Study, high serum calcium was associated with worse global cognitive function at baseline ( P <.05) and a faster rate of decline in cognitive function during follow‐up ( P =.005) in individuals aged 75 and older but not in younger individuals. In the Leiden 85‐plus Study, high serum calcium was associated with worse global cognitive function from age 85 through 90 ( P <.001). This observation also held for the specific cognitive domains tested (all P <.01). These results did not change when individuals with serum calcium levels greater than normal (>2.55 mmol/L) were excluded from the analyses. CONCLUSION: In the general population, high serum calcium levels are associated with faster decline in cognitive function over the age of 75.