LAUSR

Several studies have shown that cognitive impairment is a complication of diabetes, however, this association has not been assessed in an older, nationally representative U.S. sample. This study determined the association between diabetes and cognitive function overall and by participant characteristics among adults age ≥60 years in the 2011-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (N=1,552). Participants had diabetes if they reported a physician diagnosis of diabetes, had an A1c ≥6.5%, or fasting plasma glucose ≥126 mg/dL. Cognitive function was assessed by three tests: Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease Word Learning subtest (CERAD W-L), which measures the ability to learn new verbal information; the Animal Fluency test, which measures executive function; and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST), which measures working memory. The standardized effect size (Cohen’s d; value ≥0.2- In conclusion, diabetes was associated with a lower ability to learn new verbal information and poorer working memory but had less of an effect on executive function. Disclosure S. Casagrande: None. C.C. Cowie: None.