A shocking Rutgers study reveals that adults with ADHD have nearly triple the risk of developing dementia. The research calls for more attention to ADHD symptoms in older adults and further research into treatments that could reduce this risk.
Rutgers researcher investigates the link between ADHD and dementia and whether the risks can be reduced with ADHD treatment.
Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are nearly three times more likely to develop dementia than adults without ADHD, according to a Rutgers study.
A shocking Rutgers study reveals that adults with ADHD are nearly three times more likely to develop dementia. The research calls for more attention to ADHD symptoms in older adults and further research into treatments that could reduce this risk.
Rutgers researcher investigates the link between ADHD and dementia and whether the risks can be reduced with ADHD treatment.
Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are nearly three times more likely to develop dementia than adults without ADHD, according to a Rutgers study.
The study, co-authored by Michal Schnaider Beeri, director of the Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at Rutgers Brain Health Institute (BHI), was published in JAMA Network Open. It followed more than 100,000 older adults in Israel over 17 years to examine whether adults with ADHD were at increased risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.
Although more than 3 percent of the adult population in the United States has ADHD, there is limited research on this group.
“By determining whether adults with ADHD are at higher risk for dementia and whether medications and/or lifestyle changes can affect the risk, the results of this research can be used to better inform caregivers and clinicians,” said Beeri, the Krieger Klein Endowed Chair in Neurodegeneration Research at BHI and a faculty member of the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research.
A shocking Rutgers study shows that adults with ADHD have nearly triple the risk of developing dementia. The research calls for more attention to ADHD symptoms in older adults and further research into treatments that could reduce this risk.
Rutgers researcher investigates the link between ADHD and dementia and whether ADHD treatment can reduce the risk.
Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are nearly three times more likely to develop dementia than adults without ADHD, according to a Rutgers study.
The study, co-authored by Michal Schnaider Beeri, director of the Herbert and Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at Rutgers Brain Health Institute (BHI), was published in JAMA Network Open. It followed more than 100,000 older adults in Israel over 17 years to examine whether adults with ADHD were at increased risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.
Although more than 3 percent of the adult population in the United States has ADHD, there is limited research on this group.
“By determining whether adults with ADHD are at higher risk for dementia and whether medications and/or lifestyle changes can affect risk, the results of this research can be used to better inform caregivers and clinicians,” said Beeri, the Krieger Klein Endowed Chair in Neurodegeneration Research at BHI and a faculty member of the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research.
Research findings and implications
Using data from a national cohort study of more than 100,000 people followed from 2003 to 2020, the researchers analysed people with and without ADHD and the incidence of dementia in the groups as they aged. The researchers found that the presence of ADHD in adults was associated with a significantly higher risk of dementia, even when other risk factors for dementia, such as cardiovascular disease, were taken into account.
ADHD in adults may materialise as a neurological process that reduces the ability for them to compensate for the effects of cognitive decline later in life, the researchers said.
“Physicians, clinicians, and caregivers who work with older adults should monitor ADHD symptoms and associated medications,” said Abraham Reichenberg, a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and senior author of the study.
“Symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity in old age shouldn’t be ignored and should be discussed with doctors,” said Stephen Levine, professor at the School of Public Health at the University of Haifa.
Potential treatments and future directions
In addition, the research suggests that ADHD treatment with psychostimulants may help reduce the risk of dementia in adults with ADHD, as psychostimulants are known to modify the course of cognitive impairment. However, the researchers said that future studies should look more closely at the effects of medication in people with ADHD and how it might affect risk.
