Do depressive symptoms in memory-impaired elders predict probable Alzheimer's disease?

Abstract

Our purpose was to determine whether performance on the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) predicted the development of probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) in memory-impaired non-demented participants. Participants were followed for two years, after which they underwent a diagnostic assessment: 27 developed probable AD, 98 remained cognitively impaired but not demented, and 18 developed other neurological conditions.The GDS did not contribute significantly to the prediction of probable AD, it was not related to scores on selected neuropsychological tests, but it was related to complaints of memory on a self-report scale. These findings highlight the need to consider patient characteristics and the method of assessing depression when examining the role of depression in dementia.