To improve health care for older persons, we need to learn more about ageing, e.g. identify protective factors and early markers for diseases. The Gothenburg H70 Birth Cohort Studies (the H70 studies) are multidisciplinary epidemiological studies examining representative birth cohorts of older populations in Gothenburg, Sweden. So far, six birth cohorts of 70-year-olds have been examined over time, and examinations have been virtually identical between studies. This paper describes the study procedures for the baseline examination of the Birth cohort 1944, conducted in 2014–16. In this study, all men and women born 1944 on specific dates, and registered as residents in Gothenburg, were eligible for participation (n = 1839). A total of 1203 (response rate 72.2%; 559 men and 644 women; mean age 70.5 years) agreed to participate in the study. The study comprised sampling of blood and cerebrospinal fluid, psychiatric, cognitive, and physical health examinations, examinations of genetics and family history, use of medications, social factors, functional ability and disability, physical fitness and activity, body composition, lung function, audiological and ophthalmological examinations, diet, brain imaging, as well as a close informant interview, and qualitative studies. As in previous examinations, data collection serves as a basis for future longitudinal follow-up examinations. The research gained from the H70 studies has clinical relevance in relation to prevention, early diagnosis, clinical course, experience of illness, understanding pathogenesis and prognosis. Results will increase our understanding of ageing and inform service development, which may lead to enhanced quality of care for older persons. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s10654-018-0459-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

LIBRA might be a useful tool to identify individuals for primary prevention interventions of dementia in midlife, and maybe in late life, but not in the oldest-old.

There is substantial acceleration in cognitive decline many years prior to death among individuals without dementia. Time of onset and rate of terminal decline vary considerably across cognitive abilities.

Objective Investigate the association of chronic depressive symptomatology (chrDS) with cortical atrophy rates and conversion to Alzheimer’s dementia (AD) over three years in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Design Prospective elderly cohort study. Setting Multicenter, clinic-based cohort. Participants MCI participants were selected from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) repository, based on availability of both serial structural MRI and chrDS endorsed on three depression-related items from the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire (chrDS n=32 or no depressive symptoms n=62) throughout follow-up. Clinical and laboratory investigations were performed every six months during the first two years and yearly thereafter (median time of follow-up three years, interquartile range 1.5 to 4.0 years). Measurements Cortical atrophy rates in 16 predefined fronto-temporo-parietal regions affected in major depression and AD, and the rate of incident AD at follow-up. Results ChrDS in a single domain amnestic MCI sample were associated with accelerated cortical atrophy in the frontal lobe and anterior cingulate, but not with atrophy rates in temporomedial or other AD-affected regions. During follow-up 38 participants (42.7%) developed AD. Participants with chrDS had 60% shorter conversion time to AD than those without depressive symptoms. This association remained significant in survival models adjusted for temporo-medial atrophy rates and showed the same trend in models adjusted for frontal cortical atrophy rate, which all increased the risk of AD. Conclusions Our results suggest that chrDS associated with progressive atrophy of frontal regions may represent an additional risk factor for conversion to dementia in MCI as opposite to representing typical prodromal AD symptomatology.

Background: Successive elderly birth cohorts improved in cognitive performance during the 20th