Association between metabolic syndrome and mild cognitive impairment and its age difference in a chinese community elderly population

OBJECTIVE: To examine associations between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its individual components with risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) among community elderly and explore the age difference. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SUBJECTS: About 2,102 aged 60 and older community residents in Beijing metropolitan area, China. MEASUREMENTS: Cognitive function was assessed by Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). MetS was defined by the 2009 harmonizing definition. Overnight-fasting blood samples were obtained to measure biochemistry indicators. RESULTS: The prevalence of MetS and MCI was 59·1% and 15·9%, respectively. After adjusting age, gender, other demographic factors, lifestyle variables and medication use, participants with MetS or its individual components are at significantly elevated risk for MCI. In terms of MMSE score, as the continuous dependent variable, the β (95% CI) of MetS was -0·68(-0·99, -0·37). For prevalence of MCI, as the dichotomy dependent variable, the odds ratio (OR) of Mets is 1·52 compared to control group (or baseline) with 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1·16 to 1·95. The multivariate association only showed significant results among participants aged less than 80 years old. CONCLUSIONS: MetS is associated with worse cognitive function among younger elderly. Managing MetS, as well as its components, may contribute to control cognitive decline and reduce related disease and social burden.