Association of neck circumference and cognitive impairment among Chinese elderly

Objectives To investigate the association between neck circumference (NC) and cognitive impairment and interactions between relevant variables to the risk of cognitive impairment. Methods A population-based survey was conducted among elderly inhabitants aged 60 years and over from a community in Shanghai suburb. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate associations and log likelihood ratio tests to examine interactions. Results Cognitive impairment was identified in 269 (10.8%) subjects from 2,500 participants. Higher BMI (OR = 1.55; 95% CI = 1.11-2.16), higher WHR (OR = 1.44; 95% CI = 1.07-1.95), and higher total cholesterol (TC) (OR = 1.52; 95% CI = 1.09-2.13) were significantly associated with the increased risk of cognitive impairment. Significant interactions were observed between TC and a few other relevant variables, respectively. Conclusions NC was associated with the high risk of cognitive impairment. Additive effects of NC with TC on cognitive impairment were observed.