Cognitive Profile in Parkinson’s Disease Dementia Patients with Low versus Normal Cerebrospinal Fluid Amyloid Beta

• Published in: Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders extra Vol. 13; no. 1; pp. 39 - 47
• Main Authors: Tufekcioglu, Zeynep, Lange, Johannes, Pedersen, Kenn Freddy, Tysnes, Ole-Bjørn, Alves, Guido, Emre, Murat
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland S. Karger AG 26.10.2023; Karger Publishers
• Subjects: Age; amyloid beta; Cerebrospinal fluid; Cognitive ability; cognitive assessment; Dementia; Education; Memory; Movement disorders; Neuropsychology; Parkinson's disease; parkinson’s disease dementia; Patients; Research Article; Semantics; Standard scores; Norway; Amyloid beta; Cerebrospinal fluid; Parkinson’s disease dementia; Cognitive assessment
• ISSN: 1664-5464; 1664-5464
• DOI: 10.1159/000534552

Introduction: In patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), low cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid beta 1-42 (Ab42) at baseline is the most consistent CSF biomarker as a risk factor for developing dementia. Low CSF Ab42 is, however, a typical hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Hence, low CSF Ab42 in patients with PD may indicate presence of comorbid AD pathology and may predict a more AD-like cognitive profile when they develop dementia. Our study aimed to investigate if low CSF Ab42 at baseline is associated with a more AD-like cognitive profile in PD patients with dementia. Methods: In a prospectively followed-up, population-based cohort of newly diagnosed PD patients, we compared the cognitive profile of dementia in those with a low CSF Ab42 level at baseline with that of patients who had normal levels at the time when they developed dementia. Four different cognitive domain z-scores (memory, attention, executive, visuospatial) were calculated. Patients were subdivided into three tertiles or categorized dichotomously based on the baseline CSF Ab42 levels as measured by electrochemiluminescence and ELISA. Results: During 10-year follow-up, 37 patients met the inclusion criteria. Memory domain composite z-scores, memory subtest z-scores, and the difference between long-delay free recall versus recognition scores were not significantly different between the groups. Composite z-scores of visuospatial functions significantly differed between the tertiles, which was not significant after Bonferroni correction. In the dichotomous group analysis, z-scores of visuospatial functions significantly differed between the two groups. The other cognitive domain z-scores were not significantly different. Conclusions: In patients with PD dementia, low CSF Ab42 level at baseline is not associated with a specific cognitive profile.