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Risk factors in Alzheimer's disease

A clinicopathologic study

Department of Neurology, St. Paul-Ramsey Medical Center, and the University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN (Dr. Mendez, and K.L. Underwood and B.A. Zander)
Department of Neuropathology, St. Paul-Ramsey Medical Center, and the University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN (Drs. Mastri and Sung)
Department of Psychiatry, St. Paul-Ramsey Medical Center, and the University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN (Dr. Frey).

We investigated potential risk factors for Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a clinicopathologic study of 407 patients with definite AD, 100 non-Alzheimer dementia patients, and 50 normal subjects. The AD patients had more first-degree relatives with dementia than the non-AD dementia group (odds ratio of 1.85, 95% confidence interval of 1.07–3.20) or the normal elderly (odds ratio of 3.60, 95% confidence interval of 1.50–8.64) but did not have significantly more head injuries, medical and psychiatric illnesses, or relatives with Down's syndrome. The AD patients with a family history of dementia had their dementia at a later age than those without an affected relative. These findings indicate a familial risk for AD that is greater than for other dementing illnesses and has age-related penetrance. This study does not support other putative risk factors for AD such as head trauma and familial Down's syndrome.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. M.F. Mendez, Department of Neurology, St. Paul-Ramsey Medical Center, 640 Jackson Street, St. Paul, MN 55101.

Presented in part at the 43rd annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, Boston, MA, April 1991.

The Alzheimer's Treatment and Research Center Brain Bank is supported by grants from the State of Minnesota, 3M Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson, Jr., Charitable Trust, and the Ramsey Foundation.

Received July 12, 1991. Accepted for publication in final form September 27, 1991.

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