Diabetes and elevated levels of cholesterol linked to cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s

According to a new study from Columbia University Medical Center researchers, a history of diabetes and elevated levels of cholesterol, especially LDL cholesterol, are associated with faster cognitive decline in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

These results add further evidence of the role of vascular risk factors in the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Findings indicate that controlling vascular conditions may be one way to delay the course of Alzheimer’s, which would be a major development in the treatment of this devastating disease as currently there are few treatments available to slow its progression.

The study will be published in the March 2009 issue of Archives of Neurology . This special issue, titled, Archives of Neurology: Neurological Disorders Related to Obesity, Diabetes Mellitus, the Metabolic Syndrome, and Other Comorbidities , is part of a special JAMA/Archives focus on diabetes and metabolic disorders.