Association of Midlife Inflammatory Markers With Cognitive Performance at 10-Year Follow-up
Teemu Kipinoinen, Sini Toppala, Juha O. Rinne, Matti Viitanen, Antti Jula, Laura L. Ekblad
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Chronic low-grade inflammation, commonly associated with cardiovascular diseases and risk factors, has been associated inconclusively with cognitive decline and dementia. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether low-grade inflammation, measured in midlife, is associated with a decline in cognitive performance after a 10-year follow-up. We hypothesized that low-grade inflammation, estimated by interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP), is a predictor of cognitive decline in the general population. METHODS: genotype, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, body mass index, depressive symptoms, smoking, and baseline cognition. RESULTS: = 0.008). Baseline TNF-α did not predict cognitive decline, and hs-CRP did not predict cognitive performance or decline after 10-years. DISCUSSION: Our results suggest that low-grade inflammation in midlife is an independent risk factor for poorer cognitive performance later in life. Of the studied markers, IL-6 and TNF-α seem to be stronger predictors for cognitive performance and decline than hs-CRP.