Spousal Loss and Cognitive Function in Later Life: A 25-year Follow-up in the AGES-Reykjavik Study

• Published in: American Journal of Epidemiology
• Main Authors: Vidarsdottir, Halldora, Fang, Fang, Chang, Milan, Aspelund, Thor, Fall, Katja, Jonsdottir, Maria K., Jonsson, Palmi V., Cotch, Mary Frances, Harris, Tamara B., Launer, Lenore J., Gudnason, Vilmundur, Valdimarsdottir, Unnur
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 2014
• Subjects: Original Contribution; Iceland
• Online Access: http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/kwt321v1; https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwt321

The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between loss of a life partner and the development of dementia and decline in cognitive function in later life. We used an Icelandic cohort of 4,370 participants in the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik Study who were living as married in 1978 (born in 1907–1935) and were either still married (unexposed cohort) or widowed (exposed cohort) at follow-up (in 2002–2006). We ascertained history of marital status and spouse's death by record linkage to the Registry of the Total Population, Statistics Iceland. The outcome measures were as follows: 1) dementia and mild cognitive impairment; and 2) memory, speed of processing, and executive function. During the observation period, 3,007 individuals remained married and 1,363 lost a spouse through death. We did not find any significant associations between loss of a spouse and our outcome variables, except that widowed women had poorer executive function (mean = −0.08) during the first 2 years after their husbands’ deaths compared with still-married women (mean = 0.09). Our findings do not support the notion that the risk of dementia is increased following the loss of a spouse, yet women demonstrate a seemingly temporary decline in executive function following the death of a partner.