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What Do We Know about Social and Non-Social Factors Influencing the Pathway from Cognitive Health to Dementia? A Systematic Review of Reviews

Lenart-Bugla, Marta; Łuc, Mateusz; Pawłowski, Marcin; Szcześniak, Dorota; Seifert, Imke; Wiegelmann, Henrik; Gerhardus, Ansgar; ... Rymaszewska, Joanna; + view all (2022) What Do We Know about Social and Non-Social Factors Influencing the Pathway from Cognitive Health to Dementia? A Systematic Review of Reviews. Brain Sciences , 12 (9) , Article 1214. 10.3390/brainsci12091214. Green open access

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Abstract

The heterogeneous and multi-factorial nature of dementia requires the consideration of all health aspects when predicting the risk of its development and planning strategies for its prevention. This systematic review of reviews provides a comprehensive synthesis of those factors associated with cognition in the context of dementia, identifying the role of social aspects and evidencing knowledge gaps in this area of research. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses from 2009–2021 were searched for within Medline, PsycINFO, CINAHL Complete, Cochrane, and Epistemonikos. Reviewers independently screened, reviewed, and assessed the records, following the PRISMA-2020 guidelines. From 314 included studies, 624 cognitive-related factors were identified, most of them risk factors (61.2%), mainly belonging to the group of ‘somatic comorbidities’ (cardiovascular disease and diabetes) and ‘genetic predispositions’. The protective factors (20%) were mainly related to lifestyle, pointing to the Mediterranean diet, regular physical activity, and cognitively stimulating activities. Social factors constituted 9.6% of all identified factors. Research on biological and medical factors dominates the reviewed literature. Greater social support and frequent contact may confer some protection against cognitive decline and dementia by delaying its onset or reducing the overall risk; however, overall, our findings are inconsistent. Further research is needed in the fields of lifestyle, psychology, social health, and the protective factors against cognitive decline and dementia.

Type: Article
Title: What Do We Know about Social and Non-Social Factors Influencing the Pathway from Cognitive Health to Dementia? A Systematic Review of Reviews
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12091214
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091214
Language: English
Additional information: © 2022 MDPI. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: dementia; cognitive function; risk factors; protective factors; social factors; cognitive decline
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science > Population Science and Experimental Medicine > MRC Unit for Lifelong Hlth and Ageing
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science > Population Science and Experimental Medicine
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10155627
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