Long-term trajectories of memory, depression, and mobility independence before death: a multi-cohort study - PubMed
6 hours ago
- #Cognitive Decline
- #Mortality Risk
- #Aging
- Memory performance significantly declines in all cohorts, with a sharp drop beginning 3 years before death in CHARLS.
- Depressive symptoms (CES-D scores) progressively increase, diverging from survivors 4-6 years before death and peaking 1-2 years before death.
- Activities of Daily Living (ADL) scores show an early decline, with significant differences emerging as early as 7 years before death in CHARLS.
- Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) scores undergo more gradual changes, with notable increases in the last 4-5 years before death.
- Memory performance is the strongest predictor of imminent mortality, followed by ADL decline, highlighting the importance of cognitive and functional abilities.
- The study provides cross-national evidence from four cohorts (CHARLS, ELSA, HRS, SHARE) on the trajectories of decline before death.