Sex Differences in the Trajectories of Cognitive Decline and Affected Cognitive Domains Among Older Adults With Controlled and Uncontrolled Glycemia

Background We aimed to analyze the trajectories of cognitive decline as a function of the presence of type 2 diabetes and glycemic control in analyzes stratified by sex in an 8-year follow-up period.Methods A total of 1 752 men and 2 232 women aged >= 50 years who participated in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), conducted from 2004 to 2012, were analyzed. The outcomes of interest were performance on the cognitive domains of memory, executive function, and temporal orientation as well as the global cognition score. Cognitive performance was standardized in z-scores in strata based on schooling and age. The participants were classified as without diabetes, with controlled glycemia, and with uncontrolled glycemia, according to medical diagnosis, glucose-lowering medications use and HbA1c levels. Generalized linear mixed models controlled by sociodemographic, behavioral, and health-related characteristics were used for the trajectory analyses.Results No differences in z-scores were found for global cognition or cognitive domains based on diabetes classification in men and women at baseline. More than 8 years of follow up, women with uncontrolled glycemia had a greater decline in z-scores for global cognition (-0.037 SD/year [95% CI: -0.073; -0.001]) and executive function (-0.049 SD/year [95% CI: -0.092; -0.007]) compared with those without diabetes. No significant difference in trajectories of global cognition or any cognitive domain was found in men as a function of diabetes classification.Conclusions Women with uncontrolled glycemia are at greater risk of a decline in global cognition and executive function than those without diabetes.