Research newsModifying dementia risk and trajectories of cognitive decline in aging: The Cache County Memory Study

The Cache County Study of Memory, Health, and Aging, more commonly referred to as the “Cache County Memory Study (CCMS)” is a longitudinal investigation of aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) based in an exceptionally long-lived population residing in northern Utah. The study begun in 1994 has followed an initial cohort of 5,092 older individuals (many over age 84) and has examined the development of cognitive impairment and dementia in relation to genetic and environmental antecedents. This article summarizes the major contributions of the CCMS towards the understanding of mild cognitive disorders and AD across the lifespan, underscoring the role of common health exposures in modifying dementia risk and trajectories of cognitive change. The study now in its fourth wave of ascertainment illustrates the role of population-based approaches in informing testable models of cognitive aging and Alzheimer's disease.