Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

In just over a decade, the number of Canadians living with dementia is expected to exceed one million and total economic burden is predicted to reach $153 billion annually. Dementia is a devastating condition marked by a progressive decline in cognition, function, and behaviour. Apathy defined as a lack of interest, initiative, or emotional reactivity is one of the most common behavioural changes prior to dementia onset and can occur in those who are considered healthy and do not have any other symptoms indicative of dementia-associated decline. Apathy is associated with accelerated progression to dementia in those without dementia, and lower quality of life and higher morbidity and mortality in patients with dementia. Given these negative outcomes, researchers can investigate the relationship between apathy and cognition with the aim of understanding underlying mechanisms and developing interventions to improve the well-being of affected individuals. This is the goal of my research. While the relationship between apathy and cognition has be explored, the investigation of different types of apathy - cognitive, behavioural, and emotional with different areas of cognition - memory, language, as well as thinking, decision-making, and perceptual abilities remains unknown. To address this, I will explore the following: i) Is there a relationship between apathy and cognition? ii) Is there a relationship between different types of apathy with cognition? iii) Is there a relationship between apathy and different areas of cognition? My research will address these questions by using statistical models to investigate associations using data gathered across Canada. My findings could potentially identify apathy as an early risk factor for cognitive decline and therefore enable individuals to seek early interventions, inform public health strategies, stimulate further research, and ultimately improve the quality of life for those at risk of dementia.