Cognitive development of a population-based birth cohort within 12 years of follow-up – Results from the ILSE-study

Introduction: The number of dementia cases is expected to significantly increase during the next years due to higher life expectancy and demographic changes. While 24 million people suffered from dementia in the year 2001 the number of cases is expected to rise to over 80 million by the year 2040 (Ferri et al., 2005). These numbers underline the importance of an early detection of dementia and its preclinical stages. One interesting question is whether neuropsychological test results of cognitively healthy people are a good marker for detecting the later development of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or Alzheime…