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Cited by 34Down syndrome and intellectual disability researchDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchAlzheimer's disease research and treatments

Age of Alzheimer's disease diagnosis in people with Down syndrome and associated factors: Results from the Horizon 21 European Down syndrome consortium

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Larsen, Frode Kibsgaard, Baksh, R. Asaad, McGlinchey, Eimear, Langballe, Ellen Melbye, Benejam, Bessy, Beresford‐Webb, Jessica, McCarron, Mary, Coppus, Antonia +8 more·2024·Alzheimer's & Dementia
DOI 10.1002/alz.13779PMC PMC11095427
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Abstract

INTRODUCTION: People with Down syndrome (DS) have high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study examined mean ages of AD diagnosis and associations with co-occurring conditions among adults with DS from five European countries. METHODS: Data from 1335 people with DS from the Horizon 21 European DS Consortium were used for the analysis. RESULTS: Mean ages of AD diagnosis ranged between 51.4 (SD 7.0) years (United Kingdom) and 55.6 (SD 6.8) years (France). Sleep-related and mental health problems were associated with earlier age of AD diagnosis. The higher number of co-occurring conditions the more likely the person with DS is diagnosed with AD at an earlier age. DISCUSSION: Mean age of AD diagnosis in DS was relatively consistent across countries. However, co-occurring conditions varied and impacted on age of diagnosis, suggesting that improvements can be made in diagnosing and managing these conditions to delay onset of AD in DS. HIGHLIGHTS: Mean age of AD diagnosis was relatively consistent between countries Sleep problems and mental health problems were associated with earlier age of AD diagnosis APOE ε4 carriers were diagnosed with AD at an earlier age compared to non-carriers Number of co-occurring conditions was associated with earlier age of AD diagnosis No differences between level of intellectual disability and mean age of AD diagnosis.

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  • DS is among the select few conditions that encompass both neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative clinical features, with most individuals demonstrating progressive cognitive impairment by mid-adulthood.

    “DS is among the select few conditions that encompass both neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative clinical features, with most individuals demonstrating progressive cognitive impairment by mid-adulthood (77, 78).”

    From Molecular and cellular processes disrupted in the early postnatal Down syndrome prefrontal cortex (2026) · cites this paper as [77]

    The Background (page unavailable) describes DS as a cause of intellectual disability and reports near-universal Alzheimer’s neuropathology by age 40, supporting the combination of developmental and degenerative features. It does not establish that most people demonstrate progressive cognitive impairment by mid-adulthood: neuropathology is not the same as clinical impairment, and the reported mean age of AD diagnosis is 53.8 years. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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Authors
Larsen, F. K., Baksh, R. A., McGlinchey, E., Langballe, E. M., Benejam, B., Beresford‐Webb, J., McCarron, M., Coppus, A., Falquero, S., Fortea, J., Levin, J., Loosli, S. V., Mark, R., Rebillat, A., Zaman, S., & Strydom, A.
Affiliations
  • University of Oslo (NO)
  • King's College London (GB)
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
  • Oslo University Hospital (NO)
  • Barcelona Down Medical Center Fundació Catalana Síndrome de Down Barcelona Spain
  • University of Cambridge (GB)
  • Trinity College Dublin (IE)
  • Radboud University Medical Center (NL)
  • Institute Jerome Lejeune Paris France
  • Hospital de Sant Pau (ES)
  • German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DE)
  • University Hospital Zurich (CH)
  • Tilburg University (NL)
  • Fondation Jérôme-Lejeune (FR)
  • Institute of Psychiatry Psychology, and Neuroscience Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, King's College London London UK
Corresponding author
Larsen, Frode Kibsgaard
ORCID
Venue
Alzheimer's & Dementia
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2024-03-20
Volume
20
Issue
5
Pages
3270-3280
ISSN
  • 1552-5260 (ISSN-L)
  • 1552-5279
DOI
10.1002/alz.13779
PMC
PMC11095427
OpenAlex
W4393024692
Cited by
34
References
55
Citations by year
2026: 17 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 2
FWCI
14.08
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Alzheimer s & Dementia (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Open access LMU (Ludwid Maxmilian's Universitat Munchen) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • DZNE Pub (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Apollo (University of Cambridge) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Trinity's Access to Research Output (TARA) (Trinity College Dublin) (submittedVersion)
  • Research portal (Tilburg University) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • NORA - Norwegian Open Research Archives (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
Funders
  • Medical Research Council (MRC MR/S011277/1, MR/S005145/1, MR/R024901/1)
  • Health Research Board (IDS‐TILDA‐2021‐001)
  • NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (NIHR203312)
  • National Institutes of Health (1R01AG056850‐01A1, R21AG056974, R01AG061566, 1R01AG081394‐01, 1R61AG066543‐01)
  • Fundación Tatiana Pérez de Guzmán el Bueno (IIBSP‐DOW‐2020‐151)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Down syndrome and intellectual disability research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
Keywords
Down syndrome, Alzheimer's disease
MeSH terms
Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Alzheimer Disease, Down Syndrome, Europe, Female, France, United Kingdom, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Sleep Wake Disorders, Comorbidity, Age of Onset, Apolipoprotein E4

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