Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine whether the APOE epsilon 4 allele also confers a risk for the cognitive impairment in normal aging.
Methods: We administered all the eight neuropsychological tests from the CERAD neuropsychological battery to the CVD-free, community-dwelling normal elderly individuals, and compared their performance by the occurrence of the APOE epsilon 4 allele.
Results: Either the impact of APOE epsilon 4 allele itself or its interaction terms with age and gender of the subjects did not influence the performance of the eight neuropsychological tests (epsilon p > 0.1 by ANCOVA).
Conclusions: The APOE epsilon 4 allele is not a risk factor for the cognitive decline in normal elderly individuals regardless of age and gender.
Copyright 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.