Engaging in musical activities and the risk of dementia in older adults: A longitudinal study from the Japan gerontological evaluation study

AIM: Leisure cognitive activities are suggested to reduce the risk of dementia. Herein, we aimed to investigate the prospective association between engaging in different musical activities and the risk of dementia among Japanese older adults. METHODS: Longitudinal data of 52 601 participants aged ≥65 years from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study were analyzed. Musical activities in the form of playing a musical instrument, practicing karaoke and choir or folk singing were assessed using a questionnaire, while dementia was diagnosed using the standardized dementia scale of the long-term care insurance system. The Cox regression was used to obtain the hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for incident dementia according to engagement in musical activities. RESULTS: Compared with engaging in no musical activities at all, the hazard ratios engaging in one and more than one musical activity, after 5.8 years of a median follow-up period, were 0.94 (95% CI 0.82-1.07) and 0.59 (95% CI 0.32-1.10) in men versus 0.79 (95% CI 0.69-0.90) and 0.89 (95% CI 0.63-1.26) in women, respectively. Playing a musical instrument and practicing karaoke, compared with no musical activities at all, were associated with a faintly decreased risk of dementia in men and a significantly decreased risk of dementia in women; hazard ratios 0.70 (95% CI 0.45-1.02) and 0.90 (95% CI 0.79, 1.04) in men versus 0.75 (95% CI 0.58-0.98) and 0.77 (95% CI 0.68-0.89) in women, respectively. CONCLUSION: Engaging in musical activities, especially playing a musical instrument and practicing karaoke, was associated with a reduced risk of dementia among Japanese older women. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 451-457.