Introduction: Sensory impairment (SI) is linked to cognitive decline, but its association with early cognitive impairment (ECI) is unclear.
Methods: Sensory functions (vision, hearing, vestibular function, proprioception, and olfaction) were measured between 2012 and 2018 in 414 Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) participants (age 74 ± 9 years; 55% women). ECI was defined as 1 standard deviation below age-, sex-, race-, and education-specific mean performance in Card Rotations or California Verbal Learning Test immediate recall. Log binomial models (cross-sectional analysis) and Cox regression models (time-to-event analysis) were used to examine the association between SI and ECI.
Results: Cross-sectionally, participants with ≥3 SI had twice the prevalence of ECI (prevalence ratio = 2.10, p = 0.02). Longitudinally, there was no significant association between SI and incident ECI over up to 6 years of follow-up.
Discussion: SI is associated with higher prevalence, but not incident ECI. Future studies with large sample sizes need to further elucidate the relationship between SI and ECI.
Highlights: Sensory impairment is associated with high prevalence of early cognitive impairmentMultisensory impairment may pose a strong risk of early changes in cognitive functionIdentifying multisensory impairment may help early detection of dementia.
Keywords: cognitive impairment; neuropsychological tests; sensory function.
© 2023 The Authors. Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring published by Wiley Periodicals, LLC on behalf of Alzheimer's Association.