Programme Dementia Prevention (pdp): A Nationwide Program for Personalized Prevention in Luxembourg

Abstract

Background: With continuously aging societies, an increase in the number of people with cognitive decline is to be expected. Aside from the development of causative treatments, the successful implementation of prevention strategies is of utmost importance to reduce the high societal burden caused by neurodegenerative diseases leading to dementia among which the most common cause is Alzheimer’s disease. Objective: The aim of the Luxembourgish “programme dementia prevention (pdp)” is to prevent or at least delay dementia in an at-risk population through personalized multi-domain lifestyle interventions. The current work aims to provide a detailed overview of the methodology and presents initial results regarding the cohort characteristics and the implementation process. Methods: In the frame of the pdp, an extensive neuropsychological evaluation and risk factor assessment are conducted for each participant. Based on the results, individualized multi-domain lifestyle interventions are suggested. Results: A total number of 450 participants (Mean age = 69.5 years; SD = 10.8) have been screened at different recruitment sites throughout the country, among whom 425 participants (94.4%) met the selection criteria. Conclusions: We provide evidence supporting the feasibility of implementing a nationwide dementia prevention program and achieving successful recruitment of the target population by establishing a network of different healthcare providers.