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PubMed · 10227623

Selective decline in memory function among healthy elderly.

S A Small·Y Stern·M Tang·R Mayeux
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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To use longitudinally acquired data to establish whether aging is associated with memory decline. BACKGROUND: Memory loss is one of the most frequent complaints among the elderly. Nevertheless, age-related memory decline remains controversial in large part because it has been established with cross-sectional studies. METHODS: A total of 212 community-based healthy people were followed prospectively and evaluated annually with a neuropsychological battery testing memory and other cognitive domains. To control for the learning effect-the improvement in test performance associated with repeated exposure-longitudinal performance was compared between two age groups. RESULTS: The older age group displayed a relative decline in memory performance with time. In contrast to memory, a relative age-related decline was not observed in tests of language, visuospatial ability, and abstract reasoning. Furthermore, within the memory domain, age-related decline was restricted to a specific aspect of memory, manifesting only in a measure sensitive to the acquisition and early retrieval of new information, and not in a measure of memory retention. This profile of age-related cognitive decline anatomically localizes to the hippocampal formation. CONCLUSION: This study establishes age-related memory decline using longitudinal data, and shows that this decline does not occur diffusely across multiple cognitive domains. Both early AD as well as non-AD processes likely contribute to age-related memory decline, and continued follow-up may reveal distinguishing features between these two.

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AgedAged, 80 and overAgingFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMaleMemoryMiddle AgedNeuropsychological TestsReference ValuesTask Performance and AnalysisJournal ArticleResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

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S A Small, Y Stern, M Tang, R Mayeux. 1999-04-22. Selective decline in memory function among healthy elderly.. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.52.7.1392

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