DETROIT, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- Two tests could help predict which elders will develop cognitive decline, a U.S. researcher says.
Lead author John Woodard of Wayne State University reports age, education, gender and family history of dementia were not accurate predictors of future cognitive decline. However, combining results of two clinical tests correctly classified 78.9 percent of healthy older adults.
"Use of these tests could play a major role in development of medications for prevention of Alzheimer's and other dementias," Woodard says in a statement.
The study published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease finds the most effective predictor of cognitive decline was the combination of a blood test for a genetic marker -- an Alzheimer's associated allele of Apolipoprotein E which, alone correctly classified 61.5 of participants -- with functional magnetic resonance imaging showing brain areas activated during mental tasks.
Woodard and colleagues tracked 78 healthy elders for 18 months after taking tests that also included a structural MRI measure of the brain's hippocampal region and two standard neuropsychological tests for mood and ability.
"No one had studied these combinations of tests in such a large sample," Woodard says. "The results have strong implications for determining who is most likely to benefit from preventive Alzheimer's disease treatments."
