Better verbal memory in women than men in MCI despite similar levels of hippocampal atrophy
- PMID: 26984945
- PMCID: PMC4831033
- DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000002570
Better verbal memory in women than men in MCI despite similar levels of hippocampal atrophy
Abstract
Objective: To examine sex differences in the relationship between clinical symptoms related to Alzheimer disease (AD) (verbal memory deficits) and neurodegeneration (hippocampal volume/intracranial volume ratio [HpVR]) across AD stages.
Methods: The sample included 379 healthy participants, 694 participants with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), and 235 participants with AD and dementia from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative who completed the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). Cross-sectional analyses were conducted using linear regression to examine the interaction between sex and HpVR on RAVLT across and within diagnostic groups adjusting for age, education, and APOE ε4 status.
Results: Across groups, there were significant sex × HpVR interactions for immediate and delayed recall (p < 0.01). Women outperformed men among individuals with moderate to larger HpVR, but not among individuals with smaller HpVR. In diagnosis-stratified analyses, the HpVR × sex interaction was significant in the aMCI group, but not in the control or AD dementia groups, for immediate and delayed recall (p < 0.01). Among controls, women outperformed men on both outcomes irrespective of HpVR (p < 0.001). In AD dementia, better RAVLT performance was independently associated with female sex (immediate, p = 0.04) and larger HpVR (delayed, p = 0.001).
Conclusion: Women showed an advantage in verbal memory despite evidence of moderate hippocampal atrophy. This advantage may represent a sex-specific form of cognitive reserve delaying verbal memory decline until more advanced disease stages.
© 2016 American Academy of Neurology.
Figures
Comment in
-
Sex differences in cognition: Does the "fairer sex" need a fairer test?Neurology. 2016 Apr 12;86(15):1364-1365. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000002573. Epub 2016 Mar 16. Neurology. 2016. PMID: 26984948 No abstract available.
Similar articles
-
The Relationship Between Hippocampal Volumes and Delayed Recall Is Modified by APOE ε4 in Mild Cognitive Impairment.Front Aging Neurosci. 2019 Feb 26;11:36. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2019.00036. eCollection 2019. Front Aging Neurosci. 2019. PMID: 30863302 Free PMC article.
-
Female advantage in verbal memory: Evidence of sex-specific cognitive reserve.Neurology. 2016 Nov 1;87(18):1916-1924. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000003288. Epub 2016 Oct 5. Neurology. 2016. PMID: 27708128 Free PMC article.
-
Moderating effects of sex on the impact of diagnosis and amyloid positivity on verbal memory and hippocampal volume.Alzheimers Res Ther. 2017 Sep 12;9(1):72. doi: 10.1186/s13195-017-0300-8. Alzheimers Res Ther. 2017. PMID: 28899422 Free PMC article.
-
Neuroimaging of hippocampal atrophy in early recognition of Alzheimer's disease--a critical appraisal after two decades of research.Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. 2016 Jan 30;247:71-8. doi: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2015.08.014. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. 2016. PMID: 26774855 Review.
-
Sex differences in cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease.World J Psychiatry. 2016 Mar 22;6(1):54-65. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v6.i1.54. eCollection 2016 Mar 22. World J Psychiatry. 2016. PMID: 27014598 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Sex Moderates Amyloid and Apolipoprotein ε4 Effects on Default Mode Network Connectivity at Rest.Front Neurol. 2019 Aug 20;10:900. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2019.00900. eCollection 2019. Front Neurol. 2019. PMID: 31481928 Free PMC article.
-
Sex differences in the association between apolipoprotein E ε4 allele and Alzheimer's disease markers.Alzheimers Dement (Amst). 2018 Jul 7;10:438-447. doi: 10.1016/j.dadm.2018.06.004. eCollection 2018. Alzheimers Dement (Amst). 2018. PMID: 30182053 Free PMC article.
-
Biomechanics of Traumatic Head and Neck Injuries on Women: A State-of-the-Art Review and Future Directions.Biology (Basel). 2023 Jan 4;12(1):83. doi: 10.3390/biology12010083. Biology (Basel). 2023. PMID: 36671775 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Sex and APOE ε4 carrier effects on atrophy, amyloid PET, and tau PET burden in early-onset Alzheimer's disease.Alzheimers Dement. 2023 Nov;19 Suppl 9(Suppl 9):S49-S63. doi: 10.1002/alz.13403. Epub 2023 Jul 26. Alzheimers Dement. 2023. PMID: 37496307 Free PMC article.
-
A systematic review of measures of gender and biological sex: Exploring candidates for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (AD/ADRD) research.Alzheimers Dement (Amst). 2023 Feb 21;15(1):e12359. doi: 10.1002/dad2.12359. eCollection 2023 Jan-Mar. Alzheimers Dement (Amst). 2023. PMID: 36845632 Free PMC article. Review.
References
-
- Stern Y, Gurland B, Tatemichi TK, Tang MX, Wilder D, Mayeux R. Influence of education and occupation on the incidence of Alzheimer's disease. JAMA 1994;271:1004–1010. - PubMed
-
- Stern Y. What is cognitive reserve? Theory and research application of the reserve concept. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 2002;8:448–460. - PubMed
-
- Stern Y, Zarahn E, Hilton HJ, Flynn J, DeLaPaz R, Rakitin B. Exploring the neural basis of cognitive reserve. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2003;25:691–701. - PubMed
-
- Stern Y, Albert S, Tang MX, Tsai WY. Rate of memory decline in AD is related to education and occupation: cognitive reserve? Neurology 1999;53:1942–1947. - PubMed
-
- Le Carret N, Auriacombe S, Letenneur L, Bergua V, Dartigues JF, Fabrigoule C. Influence of education on the pattern of cognitive deterioration in AD patients: the cognitive reserve hypothesis. Brain Cogn 2005;57:120–126. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical
Miscellaneous