Longitudinal study of quality of life in people with advanced Alzheimer's disease.
The authors examined three indicators of health-related quality of life in people with advanced Alzheimer's disease ([AD]; N=150): confinement to home, null activity, and null positive affect, as reported by patient proxies. Dementia severity predicted time-to-onset for all three disease milestones in models that controlled for sociodemographic indicators, nursing home status, and death in the follow-up period. Patients whose dementia worsened over follow-up were more likely to reach each milestone. These outcomes represent key milestones in the care of patients; they are sensitive to disease progression, and they are likely to be useful for studying treatment in advanced AD.
Albert
S M
SM
Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center and Department of Neurology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA. sma10@columbia.edu
Jacobs
D M
DM
Sano
M
M
Marder
K
K
Bell
K
K
Devanand
D
D
Brandt
J
J
Albert
M
M
Stern
Y
Y
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006701:Home Nursing; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011788:Quality of Life; D012306:Risk; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014481:United States