Exploring the relationship between CAIDE dementia risk and EEG signal activity in a healthy population

Background: Accounting for dementia risk factors is essential in identifying people who would benefit most from intervention programs. The CAIDE dementia risk score is commonly applied, but its link to brain function remains unclear. This study aims to determine whether the variation in this score is associated with neurophysiological changes and cognitive measures in normative individuals. Methods: The sample comprised 38 participants aged between 54 and 79 (M = 67.05; SD = 6.02). Data were collected using paper-and-pencil tests and electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings in the resting state, channels FP1 and FP2. The EEG signals were analyzed using Power Spectral Density (𝑃𝑆𝐷)-based features. Results: The CAIDE score is positively correlated with the relative power activation of the 𝜃 band and negatively correlated with the MMSE cognitive test score, and MMSE variations align with those found in distributions of EEG-extracted 𝑃𝑆𝐷-based features. Conclusions: The findings suggest that CAIDE scores can identify individuals without noticeable cognitive changes who already exhibit brain activity similar to that seen in people with dementia. They also contribute to the convergent validity between CAIDE and the risk of cognitive decline. This underscores the importance of early monitoring of these factors to reduce the incidence of dementia.