Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 18, 2026

A Machine Learning Approach to Design an Efficient Selective Screening of Mild Cognitive Impairment
Published on: January 11, 2020
QT dispersion in mild cognitive impairment: a possible tool for predicting the risk of progression to dementia?
Ludovico Coppola1, Luigia Mastrolorenzo, Antonino Coppola
1Department of Geriatric and Metabolic Disease, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy. ludovico.coppola@unina2.it
Objective:
The aim of this research was to investigate relationships between cognitive function and non-invasive, repeatable cardiac parameters in elderly subjects suffering from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Methods:
Two hundred and twenty-four community-living elderly subjects, 31 AD patients, 77 MCI patients, and 116 cognitively normal subjects (CNS), were evaluated for cognitive abilities (Mini Mental State Examination score (MMSE)) and for electrocardiographic [corrected heart rate QT interval dispersion (QTcD)] and echocardiographic [Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF)] parameters.
Results:
Mean values of LVEF were not significantly different between the three groups; QTcD mean values were significantly lower in CNS group than in subjects with MCI and AD. The Pearson Product Moment Correlation test, carried out in the three study groups, showed a significant inverse correlation between QTcD and MMSE score (r = -0.357; p < 0.01) in the group of MCI patients, only. In multivariable-adjusted linear regression tests, QTcD (p = 0.030) and education (p = 0.021) are associated with MMSE score in MCI group. Only the parameter of education appears to predict MMSE in CNS group; none of these parameters appear to predict MMSE in the group of patients with AD.
Conclusion:
The association between QTcD and MMSE requires cautious interpretation and further extensive investigation. However, if confirmed by longitudinal studies, the finding could play a role in the management of the subjects with MCI.
Related Concept Videos
Dementia l: Introduction
Dementia
The progression of dementia is generally gradual.
Alzheimer Disease l: Introduction
Alzheimer's Disease: Overview
The clinical diagnosis of AD hinges on the presence of memory and other cognitive impairments. Biomarkers, such as changes in Aβ and tau...
Alzheimer's Disease: Treatment
Cognitive Development During Adulthood

