Background: Chronic Kidney disease (CKD) in elderly patients leads to dementia and cognitive impairment which leads to functional dependence and recurrent hospitalization.
Objective: To assess different cognitive domains in CKD elderly patients.
Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted in Ain-Shams University hospital outpatient clinics. A total of 100 CKD patients, elderly aged 60 years and older with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and not on renal replacement therapy were enrolled in the study. The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD) neuropsychological battery was utilized to assess cognitive functions domains (executive functions, language functions, verbal learning, visuospatial functions, delayed recall, memory consolidation, and recognition memory) for 100 CKD patients visited Ain Shams University hospital outpatient clinics who scored > 24 in the Mini-mental state examination (MMSE.)
Results: CKD patients had low mean MMSE and mean verbal fluency while language functions score had not been affected. There was a significant positive correlation (p< 0.001) between the mean eGFR and the CERAD total score.
Conclusion: CERAD total score was positively correlated to eGFR in CKD patients confirming the association between cognition and renal impairment. Age and educational level significantly affect cognitive performance.