An inflammatory marker called sCD14 is related to brain atrophy, cognitive decline and dementia, according to a study of more than 4,700 participants from two large community-based heart studies. The study was published Dec. 9 in the journal Neurology.
“We have strong reason to believe that sCD14 can be a useful biomarker to assess a person’s risk of cognitive decline and dementia,” said study senior author Sudha Seshadri, M.D., professor of neurology at UT Health San Antonio and director of the university’s Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases.
“The most exciting part is that we could assess this risk in advance, when there is ample time to intervene and change the course of a person’s life,” Dr. Seshadri said.