Head trauma, PTSD related to Alzheimer’s disease, related dementias

Traumatic brain injury, PTSD and the apolipoprotein E4 gene have shown strong associations with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, researchers report in Alzheimer’s and dementia.

PTSD and TBI are independently associated with AD risk. However, the simultaneous impact has never been studied, Mark W. Logue, PhDstatistician at the National Center for PTSD at the VA Boston Healthcare System, and colleagues wrote.

Logue and colleagues assessed the impact of APOE4, PTSD, and TBI on the prevalence of AD and related dementias (ADRD) in cohorts of veterans of European and African ancestry.

In the European cohort, there were 11,112 SARD cases and 170,361 controls; in the African cohort, there were 1,443 SARD cases and 16,191 controls.

Additive scale interactions were calculated using the excess relative risk due to the interaction statistic.

Researchers have reported an increased risk due to PTSD and TBI in veterans of European ancestry who inherited the APOE4 gene. In veterans of African descent, TBI showed an increased risk, but not PTSD.

“These additive interactions indicate that the prevalence of ADRD associated with PTSD and TBI increased with the number of inherited diseases. APOE4 alleles,” Logue and colleagues wrote. “History of PTSD and TBI will be an important part of interpreting ADRD genetic test results and accurately assessing ADRD risk.”

Reference:

Head trauma, PTSD may increase the impact of the genetic variant on Alzheimer’s risk. https://www.research.va.gov/currents/1222-Head-trauma-PTSD-may-increase-genetic-variants-impact-on-Alzheimers-risk.cfm. Published December 22, 2022. Accessed December 23, 2022.