Ingmar Skoog

Research in brief
The primary objective of Dr. Skoog’s epidemiology group is to study the importance of genetic, biological, and psychosocial factors for the development of dementia (e.g., AD, vascular dementia) and other mental disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis) in the elderly. A particular interest is whether the influence of these factors changes with age and over time and how they interact with each other. Other objectives are to study (1) the prevalence and incidence of dementia, depression, psychoses, and anxiety syndromes, (2) preclinical symptoms and other predictors of dementia and depression, as well as the course and prognosis of these disorders, (3) the relationship between biomarkers, genes, and changes in brain morphology (using blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and computed tomography) on mental health disorders, and (4) factors related to dementia-free survival into extreme old age.

To address these objectives, Dr. Skoog and colleagues recruited, and continue to longitudinally follow, well-characterized and representative populations in Göteborg who were of ages 36-60, 70, and 95 years at baseline years of 1968-1996. Using these cohorts, they were the first to report that cerebrovascular causes of dementia might be more common than previously thought. Furthermore, they report novel associations between vascular risk factors, such as high blood pressure and overweight, and AD, as well as associations between these conditions and brain atrophy. In relation to this, they recently found that reduced respiratory function was associated with incidence of AD. They have also reported on blood-brain-barrier (BBB) disturbance in AD. Interestingly, they found an association between low blood cholesterol and dementia. In longitudinal epidemiological studies, they demonstrated a very high life-time prevalence of depression, approximately 45% in women and 22% in men. The generally higher prevalence in women than in men is of interest in relation to SS.