# Hoarding disorder in older adults: cognition, etiology and functional impact

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA · 2022 · $538,055

## Abstract

Hoarding Disorder (HD) is a common, chronic and debilitating psychiatric disorder that
disproportionately affects older adults, and has a profound public health impact on individuals,
families and society. While safety risks associated with clutter in HD has been consistently
documented (i.e. up to 25% of deaths by house fire are due to hoarding), the true extent of
disability in this patient population is not known. Further, factors contributing to disability in older
adults with HD, including cognitive factors, have not been adequately clarified. Emerging data,
including work from our group, suggest that deficits in specific cognitive domains are common
across the lifespan in HD. This project will examine the functional impact of HD in older adults
– specifically, the relationships among cognitive functioning, hoarding symptom severity, and
disability. Further, we will assess the genetic risk profile of HD, and the association of HD with
medical and psychiatric comorbidities that also impact disability. To achieve our aims, we will
combine in-person clinical, neuropsychological, and medical frailty assessments with a unique
epidemiologic resource, the online Brain Health Registry (BHR; www.brainhealthregistry.org).
The BHR, which was designed to accelerate participation in clinical trials of aging and aging-
related disorders, has, in three years, enrolled over 54,000 subjects who are expressly
interested in participating in ongoing research with 1000 new participants enrolling every month.
Nearly half (47%) of participants are ages 60 and older. Participants are well characterized in
regard to psychiatric, neurological, family and medical history, and are followed longitudinally
with re-assessments every six months. Identifying factors related to disability in older adults with
HD will inform the development of more effective treatment interventions in this vulnerable
population and offers significant promise for improving quality of life.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10429983
- **Project number:** 5R01MH117114-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Robert Scott Mackin
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $538,055
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-07-26 → 2025-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10429983

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10429983, Hoarding disorder in older adults: cognition, etiology and functional impact (5R01MH117114-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10429983. Licensed CC0.

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