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Abstract
Objective: To investigate whether the APOE-ε4 allele is associated with weight loss in patients with AD or in nondemented elderly subjects. Background: Weight loss has been considered a typical feature of AD. APOE-ε4 is a risk factor for AD and was recently proposed to be associated with weight loss in elderly women. It is not known whether APOE-ε4 is associated with weight loss in patients with AD or in the general population.
Methods: Weight and BMI measurements at an average interval of 3.5 years and APOE phenotype determination were performed in an elderly population (n = 980), including 46 patients with AD and 911 control subjects at the end of the follow-up.
Results: On average, patients with AD with the ε4 allele lost 1.9 ± 4.0 kg (BMI 0.8 ± 1.8 kg/m2) whereas ε4 noncarriers gained 1.2 ± 3.8 kg (BMI 0.4 ± 1.5 kg/m2) (both p < 0.05), after controlling for diabetes and exercise. However, when men and women were analyzed separately, weight loss was observed only in those women with AD with the ε4 allele. Clinically significant weight loss, defined as loss of ≥5% of body weight, occurred more frequently in both patients with AD (30% versus 6%; p < 0.05) and control subjects (28% versus 18%; p < 0.001) carrying the ε4 allele.
Conclusions: The APOE-ε4 allele may contribute to the unexplained weight loss in AD, especially in women.
- Received May 12, 2000.
- Accepted November 21, 2000.
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