ISSN: 0034-8376
eISSN: 2564-8896





Geriatric Syndromes and Not Cardiovascular Risk Factors are Associated with Cognitive Impairment among Mexican Community-Dwelling Elderly with Type 2 Diabetes




Omar Y. Bello-Chavolla, Research Division, Instituto Nacional de Geriatría, Mexico City, Mexico
,
José Alberto Ávila-Funes, Department of Geriatrics, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, México D.F., Mexico


Background: The association of cognitive impairment and type 2 diabetes has been consistently shown in several studies, yet its association with geriatric syndromes has not been fully explored. Objective: To study the correlates of cognitive impairment among community-dwelling elderly with type 2 diabetes. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 135 diabetic persons aged 70 years or older participating in the Coyoacán Cohort Study in Mexico City. Baseline data included chronic illnesses, geriatric syndromes, and diabetes-related variables. The lowest quartile in both the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Isaacs Set Test, according to age and schooling, was used to identify participants with cognitive impairment. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to identify the correlates of cognitive impairment. Results: Mean age of participants was 77.7 ± 5.8 years. The prevalence of cognitive impairment was 14.1%. Univariate logistic regression analyses showed that diabetic nephropathy, depression symptoms, falls, and frailty were associated with cognitive impairment. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that urinary incontinence and frailty were independently associated with cognitive impairment. Cardiovascular risk factors and diabetes-related variables did not show significant association to cognitive impairment. Conclusions: Geriatric syndromes, but not cardiovascular risk factors, were independently associated with cognitive impairment among diabetic elderlies. Intentional evaluation of these conditions may be important to improve management of the elderly patient with type 2 diabetes and cognitive impairment.



Keywords: Geriatric syndrome. Cognitive impairment. Frailty. Urinary incontinence. Diabetes.






Supplementary Data