EXAMINING CHANGES IN COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT SYMPTOMS AMONG OLDER U.S. BLACK AND WHITE ADULTS

摘要

Individuals with increasing cognitive impairment are at risk of developing Alzheimer’s or other dementias. Blacks are approximately 2–3 times more likely than whites to have cognitive impairment and these disparities worsen over time. This study examines black-white disparities in cognitive impairment scores among aging adults enrolled in all 5 waves of the Americans’ Changing Lives Study (N =3,617). Cognitive impairment was assessed at each wave using a 5-item Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire. Multilevel analyses with age as the level-1 variable and other variables at the person-level were conducted. A significant interaction between age-squared and race was found (chi-squared = 6.19, p = .045), indicating that blacks cognitive impairment scores at each wave was significantly higher than whites in the presence of model covariates. Study findings demonstrate clear racial differences in the trajectory of cognitive impairment symptoms over time; whereby, cognitive impairment is more prevalent in later life among blacks.