A brief checklist of modifiable dementia risk factors (RF12): associations with cognitive and affective measures in an Italian cohort
Introduction Low education, hearing loss, traumatic brain injury, hypertension, alcohol abuse, obesity, smoking, depression, social isolation, physical inactivity, air pollution, and diabetes are modifiable lifestyle and experiential factors associated with an increased risk of developing dementia. This study introduces the 12-item Risk Factor Questionnaire (RF12), a brief checklist designed to capture these modifiable dementia risk factors. We present a preliminary investigation of criterion-related, cross-sectional associations between RF12 scores and cognitive/affective measures in a community-dwelling Italian cohort, comparing three scoring methods: self-report, informant-report, and a weighted score. Methods A sample of 563 community-dwelling, cognitively healthy adults (326 females; mean age = 61.79 ± 10.19 years, range = 27–91; years of education = 11.76 ± 4.60, range = 3–30) completed the RF12 alongside standard cognitive assessments (MMSE, MoCA, SATURN, FAB) and a depression scale (GDS). Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to examine the proportion of variance in cognitive and affective outcomes explained by RF12 scores, controlling for age, sex, and education. Results A moderate correlation was observed between self- and informant-reported RF12 scores (Spearman’s ρ = 0.408, p < 0.001). Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that each RF12 scoring method accounted for unique, albeit small, portions of variance in cognitive and affective outcomes (incremental ΔR2 ranging from 0.8 to 2.3%, even after controlling for age, sex, and education. Discussion The RF12 captures relevant dementia-related risk factors in a low-burden format, although the proportion of variance explained is modest. The tool may be useful for research, epidemiological applications, and prevention efforts. Further longitudinal studies are needed to evaluate its predictive validity in clinical populations and its potential utility in primary care and public health settings.