Possible and Probable Dementia and Depressive/Anxiety Symptoms in U.S. Older Adults: One-Year Follow-Up

Using data from the 2022 and 2023 U.S. National Aging and Health Trends Studies (N = 4,942 sample persons interviewed in both years), we examined cross-sectional and one-year lagged bidirectional relationships between the severity of cognitive impairment and depressive/anxiety symptoms. We fitted multinomial logistic and linear regression models for cross-sectional associations and a path model for one-year cross-lagged associations. Depressive/anxiety symptoms were cross-sectionally associated with a higher likelihood of both possible (mild) and probable (advanced) dementia compared to no dementia, with an even greater likelihood for probable dementia. Depressive/anxiety symptoms in 2022 were significantly associated with 2023 probable dementia, and probable dementia in 2022 was significantly associated with depressive/anxiety symptoms in 2023. The findings underscore the importance of early identification and concurrent management of both cognitive decline and depressive/anxiety symptoms in older adults.