Diabetes Mellitus Linked to Dementia Risk, With Highest Risk in T1DM

THURSDAY, March 19, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with an elevated risk for dementia, with the highest risk for type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), according to a study published online March 18 in Neurology.Anna M. Pederson, M.P.H., from the Boston University School of Public Health, and colleagues used linked electronic health records (EHRs) to examine the associations of T1DM and T2DM, separately, with incident dementia in a prospective cohort study. Previously collected survey and EHR data were obtained from the All of Us (AoU) cohort. An algorithm was developed to distinguish DM type based on the count of T1DM encounters and was validated against self-reported diabetes type and C-peptide values. Participants were classified as having no DM, T1DM, and T2DM using AoU data.The researchers observed variation in the optimal DM classification algorithm cutoffs by reference standard. For at least one T1DM EHR encounter for self-reported diabetes type, sensitivity and specificity were 0.59 and 0.90, respectively; for at least three T1DM EHR encounters for C-peptides, sensitivity and specificity were 0.76 and 0.79, respectively. Overall, 5,442 participants had T1DM when defining T1DM as having one or more T1DM encounters. Participants with T1DM had higher dementia incidence compared with those without DM (sociodemographic-adjusted hazard ratio, 2.82), and risk was also elevated for those with T2DM (sociodemographic-adjusted hazard ratio, 2.08). Across sex, race, and ethnicity strata, results were similar."We have known that type 2 diabetes is linked to an increased risk of dementia, but this new research suggests that, unfortunately, the association may be even stronger for those with type 1 diabetes," coauthor Jennifer Weuve, M.P.H., Sc.D., also from Boston University, said in a statement.Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required).Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Diabetes Mellitus Linked to Dementia Risk, With Highest Risk in T1DM

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