Mexican Teachers' Cohort Cognitive Study: A pilot of home-based assessments

INTRODUCTION: Expanding research on aging and cognition in low- and middle-income countries is critical, yet logistically complex. Large, established cohorts, such as the Mexican Teachers' Cohort (MTC; >100,000 women), pose unique opportunities for neurocognitive research in Latin America. METHODS: We evaluated the feasibility of home-based cognitive assessments in 150 Mexico City MTC participants, equally distributed across ages 55 to 59, 60 to 64, and ≥65. Tests included immediate/delayed word list recall, forward/backward digit span, and semantic verbal fluency. RESULTS: Over 3 weeks, 274 homes were approached; 186 participants (56%) were at the known addresses, and 153 (82%) participated. Participants (median age = 61; 53% college-educated) demographically resembled non-participants. Cognitive scores spanned a broad range, demonstrating no floor/ceiling effects (immediate recall: 3 to 10; delayed recall: 1 to 10; digits forward: 3 to 8; digits backwards: 0 to 6; semantic fluency: 6 to 38 animals). DISCUSSION: Home cognitive assessments may be feasible for large established cohorts in Latin America. These studies are promising for aging research.