Relationships between cholesterol, apolipoprotein E polymorphism and dementia: a cross-sectional analysis from the PAQUID study.

This study assesses the cross-sectional relationship between serum cholesterol level and dementia, controlling for apolipoprotein E (apoE) genotype, in a nested case-control study of 334 elderly French subjects aged 73 and over who participated in the PAQUID study (37 demented subjects and 297 nondemented controls). A diagnosis of dementia was established by two-step screening: (1) psychometric testing and DSM-III-R criteria and (2) neurologist's confirmation. Cholesterol, its fractions and apoE genotype were determined from a blood sample. Elevated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was associated with a significantly decreased risk of dementia, independent of apoE status and other potential confounding variables, suggesting that cholesterol fractions could be involved in both Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Copyright 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel