title: Is late onset depression a prodrome to dementia?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent research suggests there are clinical and biological differences between late onset depression (LOD) and early-onset depression (EOD).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  In this paper we review clinical, epidemiological, structural neuroimaging and genetic investigations of late life depression that have been performed over the past two decades and offer evidence that LOD is often a prodromal disorder for dementia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  LOD patients are more likely to have cognitive impairment and to have more deep white matter lesions (DWMLs). Evidence concerning cortical and temporal lobe atrophy is conflicting, while the ApoE 4 allele is not associated with LOD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It is likely that LOD is not a prodrome for a particular type of dementia, but the majority of patients who do develop dementia will acquire Alzheimer's disease (AD) or a vascular dementia, as these are by far the most common causes of dementia. This issue requires further clarification with follow-up of patients over the long term.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Australia. i.schweitzer@medicine.unimelb.edu.au
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Schweitzer
authors.forename: Virginia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Tuckwell
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: O'Brien
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ames
mesh_terms: D017668:Age of Onset; D000368:Aged; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics; D001284:Atrophy / Q000209:etiology; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000473:pathology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000150:complications; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003704:Dementia / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D001057:Apolipoproteins E