Plasma cortisol levels in elderly female subjects with Alzheimer's disease: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study

We investigated the plasma cortisol levels at a fasting state in elderly fe male Alzheimer's disease (AD), vascular dementia (VD), and non-demented sub jects (n=66. 28 and 21, respectively). Twenty-eight AD subjects were follow ed for 40 months. The plasma cortisol levels in AD and VD subjects were sig nificantly higher than those of non-demented subjects at baseline. In AD su bjects in relatively early stages of the disease [Mini-Mental State Examina tion (MMSE)], at baseline, high plasma cortisol led to rapid declines in MM SE scores over a 40-month period. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.