Ethnicity Breakdown
All participants were Italian.
Diagnosis & Evaluation Methods
The baseline and follow-up surveys consisted of two phases. The first included a personal interview, physical exam, and laboratory tests. These included a MMSE, the Italian version of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and performance tests. The investigators restricted the second phase of the study to participants who screened positive in the first phase of suspected diseases and disorders, and clinically confirmed these diseases via a specialist exam and medical records review.
For a detailed description, see Maggi et al. 1994.
References
Maggi S, Zuchetto M, Grigoletto F, Baldereschi M, Candelise L, Scarpini E, Scarleto G, Amsducci L. The Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging (ILSA): design and methods. Aging (Milano);1994 Dec;6(6):464-73.
Solfirzzi V, Scafato E, Papurso C, D'Introno A, Colacicco AM, Frisardi V, Vendemiale G, Baldereschi M, Crepaldi G, Di Carlo A, Galluzzo L, Gandin C, Inzitari D, Maggi S, Capurso A, Panza F. Metabolic syndrome and the risk of vascular dementia: the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry;2010;81(4):433-40.