Clinical Research Directory

Dementia and Kidney Disease: Epidemiological Approaches to Risk Factors and Treatment Strategies

Kidney disease and dementia are both common in older adults, posing a significant burden on individuals and society. Growing evidence suggests that there may be links between the kidney and the brain. However, few studies have explored how these two conditions are connected in the general population. Understanding this link could help improve care for people living with either or both conditions. This observational project aims to explore the two-way relationship between kidney disease and dementia. The main questions the investigators want to answer are: 1. Does kidney disease increase the risk or worsen the progression of dementia? 2. Does having dementia increase the risk or worsen the progression of kidney disease (both chronic and acute)? 3. Do reno-protective drugs help protect cognitive decline? 4. Do anti-dementia drugs help preserve kidney function? To answer these questions, the investigators will analyze data collected over a period of 12 years, including people diagnosed with dementia, kidney disease, or both, using several large Swedish and international health registries: 1. The Swedish Dementia Registry (SveDem) 2. The Stockholm CREAtinine Measurements (SCREAM) project 3. The Swedish Renal Registry (SRR) 4. The GeroCovid Cohort 5. The Registry of Dementia of Girona (ReDeGi) 6. Cognitive impairment cohort from memory clinic, Karolinska University Hospital This study will apply both traditional and advanced epidemiological methods, including multivariable regression, survival analysis, mixed-effects models, and machine learning (ML) techniques to examine long-term trends and associations.