Air Pollution and the Risk of Dementia: The Rotterdam Study

Background: Exposure to air pollution has been suggested to increase the risk of dementia, but studies on this link often lack a detailed screening for dementia and data on important confounders. Objective: To determine the association of exposure to air pollution with the risk of dementia and cognitive decline in the population-based Rotterdam Study. Methods: Between 2009 and 2010, we determined air pollutant concentrations at participants residential addresses using land use regression models. Determined air pollutants include particulate matter Results: Of the 7,511 non-demented participants at baseline, 545 developed dementia during a median follow-up of 7 years. The general marker of all air pollutants was not associated with the risk of dementia (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.04 [0.95–1.15]), neither were the individual air pollutants. Also, the general marker of all air pollutants or the individual air pollutant levels were not associated with cognitive decline. Conclusion: In this study, we found no clear evidence for an association between exposure to air pollution and the risk of dementia or cognitive decline.