Correlation between Cognition, Functional Ability and Quality of Life in Older Adults having Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) represents self-perceived cognitive impairment that may precede objective signs of cognitive decline. Exploring the association between cognition, functional ability, and Quality of Life (QoL) among older adults having SCD, will help in identification of at-risk population and tailor interventions. Aim: To investigate the association between cognition, functional ability and QoL among older adults having SCD across different Socioeconomic Status (SES) and gender. Materials and Methods: The present a cross-sectional study included data collected from the Outpatient Department (OPD) of a Rehabilitation Institution in Delhi,India between July 2023 to October 2023. Data from 130 older adults with SCD was taken by random sampling for cognition, functional ability, QoL and SES. Cognition was assessed using Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) and Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination III (ACE-III). Functional ability was measured by Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (L-IADL) Scale, QoL {Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL)} by SF-36 Health Survey and Kuppuswamy socioeconomic scale was used to measure SES. Descriptive statistics, Pearson product-moment correlations, and chi-square tests were used to explore the association between the variables. Results: SES was not significantly correlated with IADL (r=- 0.098, p=0.267), SF-36 scores (r=0.131, p=0.138), or ACE-III scores (r=0.145, p=0.099). In males, a statistically significant moderate positive correlation was found between MOCA and ACE-III scores (r=0.521, p<0.001), indicating consistency in cognitive assessment tools and no significant correlations were found between SES and MOCA (r=0.137, p=0.221), IADL (r=-0.076, p=0.502), or SF-36 scores (r=0.072, p=0.520). Among females, a statistically significant moderate-to-strong correlation was also observed between MOCA and ACE-III scores (r=0.546, p<0.001). Additionally, a weak but positive, nearly significant correlation was observed between SES and MOCA scores (r=0.255, p=0.078), indicating a possible trend. The correlation between SES and SF-36 was also weak and non-significant (r=0.212, p=0.143). Conclusion: A statistically significant moderate positive correlation was observed between MOCA scores and ACEIII scores. This indicates that participants who scored higher on the MOCA also tended to have higher ACE-III scores. The correlation between SES and MOCA score was weak and not statistically significant. Other variables did not show strong or statistically significant relationships.