The role of comorbidities in the associations between air pollution and Alzheimer's disease: A national cohort study in the American Medicare population - PubMed
3 days ago
- #Alzheimer's disease
- #Air pollution
- #Comorbidities
- The study investigates the role of comorbidities in the association between air pollution (PM2.5) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the US Medicare population.
- A nationwide cohort study of 27.8 million Medicare beneficiaries aged 65+ from 2000 to 2018 was conducted.
- PM2.5 exposure was linked to increased AD risk, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.085 per interquartile range (IQR) increase.
- Stroke slightly amplified the PM2.5-AD association (HR: 1.105), while hypertension and depression showed minimal effect modification.
- PM2.5 exposure was also associated with higher risks of hypertension, depression, and stroke, which are linked to AD.
- Mediation effects of comorbidities were minimal (hypertension: 1.6%, stroke: 4.2%, depression: 2.1%).
- The study concludes that PM2.5 primarily increases AD risk directly, with stroke modestly increasing susceptibility.
- Findings highlight the need for air quality interventions in dementia prevention strategies for aging populations.