title: Late life anxiety is associated with decreased memory and executive functioning in community dwelling older adults.
abstract: This study assessed the degree to which anxiety and depression symptoms are associated with memory and executive functioning among community-dwelling older adults (N=120; M age=74.9 years, SD=7.2 years; 62% women). Participants completed the Geriatric Anxiety Scale, Geriatric Depression Scale, Comorbidity Index, California Verbal Learning Test, Second Edition (CVLT-II), and the Trail Making, Verbal Fluency, and 20 Questions subtests of the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS). Multiple regression analyses indicated that anxiety and depression predicted poorer ability to learn new information (CVLT-II, Trials 1-5). Both anxiety and depression predicted performance on the D-KEFS Trail Making test, Number-Letter Switching condition. Anxiety, but not depression, predicted decreased categorization as measured by the D-KEFS 20 Questions, Initial Abstraction Score. Depression but not anxiety, predicted performance on D-KEFS Letter Fluency and Category Fluency. Findings suggest that anxiety and depression have unique relationships with cognitive functioning in community-dwelling older adults.
authors.affiliation: VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Stanford University School of Medicine, United States; University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, United States.
authors.forename: Brian P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Yochim
authors.forename: Anne E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Mueller
authors.forename: Daniel L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Segal
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: Aging; Anxiety; Cognition; Executive functions; Memory; Older adults