title: Educational differentials in life expectancy with cognitive impairment among the elderly in the United States.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article provides estimates of education differentials in life expectancy with and without cognitive impairment for the noninstitutionalized population aged 70 years and older in the United States.
  
  
  METHODS
  Life expectancy with cognitive impairment was calculated using multistate models, allowing transitions between cognitively intact and cognitively impaired states and from each of these states to death and allowing transition rates to vary across age and education. Four waves of the Assets and Health Dynamics of the Oldest Old survey were used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Those with low levels of education are more likely to become cognitively impaired and do so at an earlier age. After age 70, persons with low educational levels can expect to live 11.6 years, and persons with high education 14.1 years, without cognitive impairment. Length of life with cognitive impairment differs by education (1.6 years and 1.0 years at age 70, respectively) but differs little by age.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although those with higher education have lower rates of both cognitive impairment and mortality, those who do become cognitively impaired appear to be in poorer health, leading to a reduced probability of improved cognition and increased probability of mortality relative to those with lower educational levels.
authors.affiliation: Institut National d'Etudes Démographiques, Paris.
authors.forename: Agnès
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lièvre
authors.forename: Dawn
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Alley
authors.forename: Eileen M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Crimmins
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000401:mortality*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008017:Life Expectancy; D008297:Male; D014481:United States