# Risk factors for MCI and Dementia in a Diverse Senior Cohort

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2021 · $721,359

## Abstract

ABSTRACT/SUMMARY
Risk factors for MCI and dementia in a diverse senior cohort. Community-based
research on mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia includes relatively few longitudinal
studies that include low-income minority seniors. PAR 15-356 specifically welcomes projects
that propose augmenting existing longitudinal cohort studies, enhancing the power of multi-
ethnic cohort studies, and exploring trends in the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We propose
to use intensive community-based outreach to recruit 800 seniors from a low-SES group of
boroughs whose population is 60% African American (AA). These boroughs, comprising the
15104 ZIP code, are within the study area of MYHAT (R01AG023651), an ongoing population-
based cohort study of cognitive impairment and dementia in 2000+ randomly selected seniors
in southwestern PA. By using the MYHAT assessment protocol in the proposed new 15104
volunteer cohort, we will collect identical data and cost-effectively leverage the MYHAT data by
pooling the two cohorts for analysis. Using appropriate sampling weights to adjust our
estimates for non-random sample selection of the 15104 cohort, we will examine risk and
resilience factors within the pooled cohort. We will identify factors associated with MCI at
baseline, and, through annual follow-up assessments, identify risk factors for subsequent
cognitive decline and dementia. Particularly, but not exclusively, we will focus on risk factors
common among AA seniors: low education, poor educational quality, low health literacy,
APOE*4 genotype, hypertension, diabetes, and smoking. We will then determine whether race
modifies the relationship between risk factors and adverse cognitive outcomes. Enhancing the
participation of minority seniors will allow us to take a critical first step towards addressing the
challenges of investigating, and eventually addressing, cognitive health disparities in the
population.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10144347
- **Project number:** 5R01AG058549-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** MARY GANGULI
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $721,359
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-08-01 → 2023-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10144347

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10144347, Risk factors for MCI and Dementia in a Diverse Senior Cohort (5R01AG058549-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10144347. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*