Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit
Abstract Background Alzheimer’s disease (AD) stands as the leading cause of dementia worldwide, and projections estimate over 150 million patients by 2050. AD prevalence is notably higher in women, nearly twice that of men, with discernible sex differences in certain risk factors. To enhance our und...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2025-01-01
|
| Series: | Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-024-01656-9 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832585969251909632 |
|---|---|
| author | Maitee Rosende-Roca Fernando García-Gutiérrez Yahveth Cantero-Fortiz Montserrat Alegret Vanesa Pytel Pilar Cañabate Antonio González-Pérez Itziar de Rojas Liliana Vargas Juan Pablo Tartari Ana Espinosa Gemma Ortega Alba Pérez-Cordón Mariola Moreno Sílvia Preckler Susanna Seguer Miren Jone Gurruchaga Lluís Tárraga Agustín Ruiz Sergi Valero Mercè Boada Marta Marquié |
| author_facet | Maitee Rosende-Roca Fernando García-Gutiérrez Yahveth Cantero-Fortiz Montserrat Alegret Vanesa Pytel Pilar Cañabate Antonio González-Pérez Itziar de Rojas Liliana Vargas Juan Pablo Tartari Ana Espinosa Gemma Ortega Alba Pérez-Cordón Mariola Moreno Sílvia Preckler Susanna Seguer Miren Jone Gurruchaga Lluís Tárraga Agustín Ruiz Sergi Valero Mercè Boada Marta Marquié |
| author_sort | Maitee Rosende-Roca |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Alzheimer’s disease (AD) stands as the leading cause of dementia worldwide, and projections estimate over 150 million patients by 2050. AD prevalence is notably higher in women, nearly twice that of men, with discernible sex differences in certain risk factors. To enhance our understanding of how sex influences the characteristics of AD patients and its potential impact on the disease trajectory, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of demographic, clinical, cognitive, and genetic data from a sizable and well-characterized cohort of AD dementia patients at a memory clinic in Barcelona, Spain. Methods The study cohort comprised individuals with probable and possible AD dementia with a Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) score between 1 and 3 diagnosed at the Memory Unit from Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona, Spain, between 2008 and 2018. We obtained cognitive baseline data and follow up scores for the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the CDR scale, and the neuropsychological battery used in our center (NBACE). We employed various statistical techniques to assess the impact of sex on cognitive evolution in these dementia patients, accounting for other sex-related risk factors identified through Machine Learning methods. Results The study cohort comprised a total of 6108 individuals diagnosed with AD dementia during the study period (28.4% males and 71.6% females). MMSE scores exhibited an average decline of approximately two units per year, unaffected by sex. Similarly, the decline in most neuropsychological functions assessed by NBACE did not exhibit significant differences between males and females. However, we observed that women diagnosed with mild AD dementia progressed more rapidly based on their CDR score (HR = 2.57, 95%CI:2.33–2.84) than men (HR = 2.03, 95%CI: 1.71–2.41) (p-interaction = 0.01). Conclusions Our findings do not strongly support the notion that sex significantly modifies the clinical progression of AD dementia based on cognitive data. Further research is essential to validate whether women with mild AD dementia indeed progress more rapidly than men at a similar stage and to delve into the potential underlying reasons for this finding. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-19cab8e10ccb486da2c4fb89c6955243 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1758-9193 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy |
| spelling | doaj-art-19cab8e10ccb486da2c4fb89c69552432025-01-26T12:18:57ZengBMCAlzheimer’s Research & Therapy1758-91932025-01-0117111310.1186/s13195-024-01656-9Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unitMaitee Rosende-Roca0Fernando García-Gutiérrez1Yahveth Cantero-Fortiz2Montserrat Alegret3Vanesa Pytel4Pilar Cañabate5Antonio González-Pérez6Itziar de Rojas7Liliana Vargas8Juan Pablo Tartari9Ana Espinosa10Gemma Ortega11Alba Pérez-Cordón12Mariola Moreno13Sílvia Preckler14Susanna Seguer15Miren Jone Gurruchaga16Lluís Tárraga17Agustín Ruiz18Sergi Valero19Mercè Boada20Marta Marquié21Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAce Alzheimer Center Barcelona - Universitat Internacional de CatalunyaAbstract Background Alzheimer’s disease (AD) stands as the leading cause of dementia worldwide, and projections estimate over 150 million patients by 2050. AD prevalence is notably higher in women, nearly twice that of men, with discernible sex differences in certain risk factors. To enhance our understanding of how sex influences the characteristics of AD patients and its potential impact on the disease trajectory, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of demographic, clinical, cognitive, and genetic data from a sizable and well-characterized cohort of AD dementia patients at a memory clinic in Barcelona, Spain. Methods The study cohort comprised individuals with probable and possible AD dementia with a Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) score between 1 and 3 diagnosed at the Memory Unit from Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona, Spain, between 2008 and 2018. We obtained cognitive baseline data and follow up scores for the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the CDR scale, and the neuropsychological battery used in our center (NBACE). We employed various statistical techniques to assess the impact of sex on cognitive evolution in these dementia patients, accounting for other sex-related risk factors identified through Machine Learning methods. Results The study cohort comprised a total of 6108 individuals diagnosed with AD dementia during the study period (28.4% males and 71.6% females). MMSE scores exhibited an average decline of approximately two units per year, unaffected by sex. Similarly, the decline in most neuropsychological functions assessed by NBACE did not exhibit significant differences between males and females. However, we observed that women diagnosed with mild AD dementia progressed more rapidly based on their CDR score (HR = 2.57, 95%CI:2.33–2.84) than men (HR = 2.03, 95%CI: 1.71–2.41) (p-interaction = 0.01). Conclusions Our findings do not strongly support the notion that sex significantly modifies the clinical progression of AD dementia based on cognitive data. Further research is essential to validate whether women with mild AD dementia indeed progress more rapidly than men at a similar stage and to delve into the potential underlying reasons for this finding.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-024-01656-9Alzheimer’s diseaseDementiaProgressionSexWomen |
| spellingShingle | Maitee Rosende-Roca Fernando García-Gutiérrez Yahveth Cantero-Fortiz Montserrat Alegret Vanesa Pytel Pilar Cañabate Antonio González-Pérez Itziar de Rojas Liliana Vargas Juan Pablo Tartari Ana Espinosa Gemma Ortega Alba Pérez-Cordón Mariola Moreno Sílvia Preckler Susanna Seguer Miren Jone Gurruchaga Lluís Tárraga Agustín Ruiz Sergi Valero Mercè Boada Marta Marquié Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy Alzheimer’s disease Dementia Progression Sex Women |
| title | Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| title_full | Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| title_fullStr | Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| title_short | Exploring sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease: a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| title_sort | exploring sex differences in alzheimer s disease a comprehensive analysis of a large patient cohort from a memory unit |
| topic | Alzheimer’s disease Dementia Progression Sex Women |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-024-01656-9 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT maiteerosenderoca exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT fernandogarciagutierrez exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT yahvethcanterofortiz exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT montserratalegret exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT vanesapytel exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT pilarcanabate exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT antoniogonzalezperez exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT itziarderojas exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT lilianavargas exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT juanpablotartari exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT anaespinosa exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT gemmaortega exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT albaperezcordon exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT mariolamoreno exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT silviapreckler exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT susannaseguer exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT mirenjonegurruchaga exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT lluistarraga exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT agustinruiz exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT sergivalero exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT merceboada exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit AT martamarquie exploringsexdifferencesinalzheimersdiseaseacomprehensiveanalysisofalargepatientcohortfromamemoryunit |