Prediction possibilities and early detection of dementia
Research on predicting dementia aims to forecast the risk of later dementia on the basis of an identified disposition or certain risk factors in a person who is healthy at the time of the study. Prediction of dementia must be distinguished from its early detection or early diagnosis, which is aimed at diagnosing a disease in a person who is often still asymptomatic at a particularly early stage.
See for the terminological distinction between prediction, predictive diagnosis and early detection of dementia:
Damm, R. (2013). Prädikative Diagnostik und Demenz. GesundheitsRecht, 12(7), 385–399, esp. 385–386. https://doi.org/10.9785/ovs-gesr-2013-385
Cf. for an overview of prediction and early detection options and risk-factors:
Jessen, F. (2019). Früherkennung der Alzheimer-Krankheit und Ansätze der Prävention. Bundesgesundheitsblatt, 62, 255–260. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00103-019-02877-2
Ranson, J. M., Rittman, T., Hayat, S., Brayne, C., Jessen, F., Blennow, K., Duijn, C. v., Barkhof, F., Tang, E., Mummery, C. J., Stephan, B. C. M., Altomare, D., Frisonie, G. B., Ribaldi, F., Mulinuevo, J. L., Scheltens, P., & Llewellyn, D. J. (2021). Modifiable risk factors for dementia and dementia risk profiling. A user manual for Brain Health Services – Part 2 of 6. Alzheimer's Research and Therapy, 13(169). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-021-00895-4
Cf. for a brief reflection on the possibilities of early diagnosis of Alzheimer's dementia:
Deutsche Alzheimer Gesellschaft e.V. (2013). Empfehlungen zum Umgang mit Frühdiagnostik bei Demenz. https://www.deutsche-alzheimer.de/fileadmin/alz/pdf/empfehlungen/empfehlungen_fruehdiagnostik_demenz_dalzg.pdf
Porsteinsson, A. P., Isaacson, R. S., Knox, S., Sabbagh, M.N., & Rubino, I. (2021). Diagnosis of early Alzheimer’s disease: clinical practice in 2021. The Journal of Alzheimer‘s Disease, 8, 371–386. https://doi.org/10.14283/jpad.2021.23