Population-Based Approaches to Alzheimer's Disease Prevention.

Progress in prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia is hampered by the restricted understanding of the biological and environmental causes underlying pathophysiology. It is widely accepted that certain genetic factors are associated with AD and a number of lifestyle and other environmental characteristics have also been linked to dementia risk. However, interactions between genes and the environment are not yet well understood, and coordinated global action is required to utilize existing cohorts and other resources effectively and efficiently to identify new avenues for dementia prevention. This chapter provides a brief summary of current research on risk and protective factors and opportunities and challenges in relation to population-based approaches are discussed.