Evidence for bilingualism as a cognitive reserve factor in biomarker-confirmed Alzheimer’s disease
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Bilingualism is a proposed cognitive reserve factor that delays symptom onset in Alzheimer's disease (AD), though current evidence lacks biomarker confirmation. This retrospective study examined bilingualism's association with symptom onset across AD clinical stages, including biomarker-confirmed cases. METHODS: Participants from the Sant Pau Memory Unit spanning amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI), amnestic dementia, and biomarker-confirmed AD were analyzed, with balanced representation of active and passive Spanish-Catalan bilinguals. Linear regression models evaluated associations between bilingualism and reported age at symptom onset, controlling for education, sex, and disease severity. RESULTS: s < .05). Higher education was associated with earlier onset, likely representing healthcare seeking behavior. DISCUSSION: Bilingualism protects against earlier symptom manifestation in MCI and AD, supporting bilingualism as a contributor to cognitive reserve.
Source: medRxiv
Authors: Stephanie M. Grasso, Wenfu Bao, Sonia Karin Marqués-Kiderle, Natalia Casart Muñoz, Marco Calabria, Isabel Sala, Maria Belén Sánchez-Saudinós, Elena Vera-Campuzano, Judit Selma-González, Laura Videla, Lídia Vaqué-Alcázar, Alexandre Bejanin, Jesús García-Castro, Íñigo Rodríguez-Baz, Nuole Zhu, Javier Arranz, Lucia Maure-Blesa, Sara Rubio-Guerra, Isabel Barroeta, Ignacio Illan-Gala, Maria Carmona-Iragui, Olivia Belbin, Daniel Alcolea, Juan Fortea, Alberto Lleó, Miguel Ángel Santos Santos
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
Awards: The Role of Inflammation and NGF Dysfunction in the Evolution of AlzheimerDisease Pathology in Down syndrome, G3120940191, Evidence-Based Speech-Language Intervention in Latinxs of Mexican Origin, Molecular bases of bilingualism's protective effect vs cognitive decline, Tau pathology in Down syndrome and Alzheimer's, Biological Correlates of Alzheimer in Down Syndrome., G9000083275
OpenAlex ID: W7148510730
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: