FACEHBI: A PROSPECTIVE STUDY OF RISK FACTORS, BIOMARKERS AND COGNITION IN A COHORT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH SUBJECTIVE COGNITIVE DECLINE. STUDY RATIONALE AND RESEARCH PROTOCOLS

• Published in: The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease Vol. 4; no. 2; pp. 1 - 9
• Main Authors: Rodriguez-Gomez, O., Sanabria, A., Perez-Cordon, A., Sanchez-Ruiz, D., Abdelnour, C., Valero, S., Hernandez, I., Rosende-Roca, M., Mauleon, A., Vargas, L., Alegret, M., Espinosa, A., Ortega, G., Guitart, M., Gailhajanet, A., Sotolongo-Grau, O., Moreno-Grau, S., Ruiz, S., Tarragona, M., Serra, J., Martin, E., Peleja, E., Lomeña, F., Campos, F., Vivas, A., Gomez-Chiari, M., Tejero, M.A., Giménez, J., Pesini, P., Sarasa, M., Martinez, G., Ruiz, A., Tarraga, L., Boada, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland 01.01.2017
• Subjects: Aged; Amyloid - blood; Aniline Compounds; Biomarkers - metabolism; Brain - diagnostic imaging; Brain - physiopathology; Cognition; Cognitive Dysfunction - diagnosis; Cognitive Dysfunction - epidemiology; Cognitive Dysfunction - physiopathology; Cognitive Dysfunction - psychology; Diagnostic Self Evaluation; Humans; Life Style; Longitudinal Studies; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Neuropsychological Tests; Positron-Emission Tomography; Radiopharmaceuticals; Research Design; Risk Factors; Stilbenes; Tomography, Optical Coherence; preclinical AD; Subjective cognitive decline; longitudinal study; biomarkers
• ISSN: 2274-5807; 2426-0266
• DOI: 10.14283/jpad.2016.122

Background: Long-term longitudinal studies with multimodal biomarkers are needed to delve into the knowledge of preclinical AD. Subjective cognitive decline has been proposed as a risk factor for the development of cognitive impairment. Thus, including individuals with SCD in observational studies may be a cost-effective strategy to increase the prevalence of preclinical AD in the sample. Objectives: To describe the rationale, research protocols and baseline characteristics of participants in the Fundació ACE Healthy Brain Initiative (FACEHBI). Design: FACEHBI is a clinical trial (EudraCT: 2014-000798-38) embedded within a long-term observational study of individuals with SCD. Setting: Participants have been recruited at the memory clinic of Fundació ACE (Barcelona) from two different sources: patients referred by a general practitioner and individuals from an Open House Initiative. Participants: 200 individuals diagnosed with SCD with a strictly normal performance in a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. Measurements: Individuals will undergo an extensive neuropsychological protocol, risk factor assessment and a set of multimodal biomarkers including florbetaben PET, structural and functional MRI, diffusion tensor imaging, determination of amyloid species in plasma and neurophthalmologic assessment with optical coherence tomography. Results: Two hundred individuals have been recruited in 15 months. Mean age was 65.9 years; mean MMSE was 29.2 with a mean of 14.8 years of education. Conclusions: FACEHBI is a long-term study of cognition, biomarkers and lifestyle that has been designed upon an innovative symptom-based approach using SCD as target population. It will shed light on the pathophysiology of preclinical AD and the role of SCD as a risk marker for the development of cognitive impairment.