Abstract
Objectives
A cohort study of JapaneseβAmerican men suggested interactive effects of depression and apolipoprotein E (APOE) e4 allele on risk of incident dementia. In another sample of East Asian origin, we sought to replicate the findings and to explore individual depressive symptoms where this interaction was most evident.
Methods
Of 625 Korean community elders without dementia at baseline, 518 (83%) were followed over a 2.4βyear period and were clinically assessed for incident dementia. Depression was identified by the Geriatric Mental State Schedule (GMS), and nine individual depressive symptoms relevant to DSMβIV major depressive episode criteria were extracted. APOE genotype was ascertained. Covariates included age, gender, education, and disability.
Results
There were synergistic interactions between depression and APOE e4 on incident dementia independent of covariates. This interaction was particularly strong for four depressive symptoms: depressed mood, worthlessness, concentration difficulty, and suicidal ideation.
Conclusions
We were able to replicate the previous study, finding that, at least in East Asian origin populations, the APOE e4 allele is a stronger predictor of incident dementia in the presence of depressive syndrome, and particular depressive symptoms. Copyright Β© 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.