Independent calculations for mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease, with consequential loss of statistical power, showed similar odds ratios, significant for mild cognitive impairment and of borderline significance for Alzheimer’s disease.
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Association between mid-life marital status and cognitive function in later life: population based cohort study.
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What is already known on this topic Social networks and an active lifestyle have been reported to protect against dementia, but most studies are based on data collected later in life and have short follow-up Reverse causation, a major methodological problem in these studies, means that participants might already be affected by subclinical dementia at baseline, thereby jeopardising causal conclusions What this study adds Being widowed from mid-life onwards was associated with the highest risk of cognitive impairment later in life with a highly significant odds ratio of 7.67 for Alzheimer’s disease Living without a partner for other reasons was also related to impaired cognitive functioning much later in life We are grateful to Håkan Locking, Centre for Labour Market Policy Research (CAFO), Växjö University, for statistical advice.