2009 Age Plus Prize Winner: Sylvia Villeneuve

Impact of Vascular Risk Factors and Diseases on Cognition in Persons with Mild Cognitive Impairment

People exhibiting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have been identified as being at high risk for developing Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). The objective of this research was to investigate the impact of vascular health on cognition of those exhibiting MCI.

To accomplish this research,  the number of risk factors and vascular diseases were counted (eg. diabetes, hypertension) in 145 older people (68 exhibiting MCI and 77 healthy older individuals). Following this,  determination of the impact of the vascular load on cognition of older people with and without MCI was considered.

The results of this research show that an increased vascular load (two risk factors or vascular diseases or more) is linked to the presence of executive deficit in those exhibiting MCI. As a result, this underlines the importance of controlling and preventing risk factors and vascular diseases.

Sylvia’s goal is to pursue a university career centered on the investigation of cognitive functioning in older people. This research supports her objective as the results indicate that vascular health influences cognitive impairment in those at risk of developing Alzheimer’s  Disease.

Sylvia is currently completing her doctorate at the University of Montreal in Neuropsychology. She intends to complete post- doctoral work in order to deepen her knowledge of the biological processes surrounding aging. Her ultimate objective is to have a better understanding of the factors influencing cognitive aging.