Affiliations: [a] Centre for Public Health, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, UK
| [b] Centre for Medical Education, Queen’s University of Belfast, Belfast, UK
| [c] Centre for Experimental Medicine, Queen’s University of Belfast, and Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, UK
| [d] Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
Correspondence:
[*]
Correspondence to: Gareth J. McKay, PhD, Centre for Public Health, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, UK. Tel.: +44 0 28 9097 8958; E-mail: g.j.mckay@qub.ac.uk.
Abstract: Background:Alzheimer’s disease (AD) prevalence is increasing globally and typically progresses for several years prior to clinical presentation of dementia. Renal dysfunction and vascular disease have been reported in association with dementia in several cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, and may contribute to AD risk. Experimental and observational studies suggest amyloid-β (Aβ) clearance may be impaired in chronic kidney disease (CKD) indicating a mechanism for increased AD risk. Objective:The objective of this study was to compare estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) between individuals with AD and cognitively intact controls, controlling for potential confounding factors. Methods:A cross-sectional, case-control study was carried out in 317 cognitively normal participants and 253 cases with a clinical diagnosis of AD in a UK tertiary care dementia clinic. Associations were considered using logistic regression adjusting for confounding variables (age, APOE ɛ4 genotype, systolic blood pressure, education (left school at 14), and smoking status). Results:AD cases were older than cognitively intact controls, had lower MMSE scores, were more likely to have at least one APOE ɛ4 allele, had higher rates of smoking, were more likely to be taking aspirin and/or clopidogrel, and had lower blood pressure. We found no significant association between eGFR and AD both before and following adjustment for appropriate confounders. Conclusion:This study failed to find an association between eGFR and AD in a cross-sectional sample study of elderly white individuals.
