Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41449362›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2025

Cohort profile: the Lebanon Study on Aging and HeAlth (LSAHA).

Carlos F Mendes de Leon, Martine Elbejjani, Sawsan Abdulrahim, Hala Ghattas, Aya El Sammak, Alexandra Abi Nassif, Frederic Conrad, Raphael Nishimura, Stephen J McCall, Abla M Sibai and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Recommended best practices for construct-centered adaptation of the Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Carlos F Mendes de LeonDepartment of Global Health, Georgetown University School of Health, Washington, DC, USA. cm2046@georgetown.edu.
Martine ElbejjaniClinical Research Institute, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Sawsan AbdulrahimDepartment of Health Promotion and Community Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Hala GhattasDepartment of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
Aya El SammakDepartment of Epidemiology and Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Alexandra Abi NassifDepartment of Epidemiology and Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Frederic ConradInstitute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Raphael NishimuraSurvey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Stephen J McCallCenter for Research on Population and Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Abla M SibaiDepartment of Epidemiology and Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
Monique ChaayaDepartment of Epidemiology and Population Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.

Funding

Dementia and Related Health and Social Challenges in Lebanon: A Population StudyR01AG069016 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · PI MENDES DE LEON, CARLOS F. · 2020 to 2024
$3.6M
NIA NIH HHS R01 AG069016NIH HHS R01 AG069016
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThis paper describes the design and cohort profile of the Lebanon Study on Aging and HeAlth (LSAHA), the first population-level study of Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) in an Arab country. The burden due to ADRD in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is among the highest in the world, but reliable population-level data on ADRD in the region are lacking. Older adults in Lebanon have experienced prolonged periods of social and economic instability due to political conflicts and chronic government mismanagement. The effects of these destabilizing experiences throughout the life course on ADRD risk and other late-life health outcomes are currently unknown.

methodsLSAHA is designed as a prospective cohort study of ADRD in a large sample of adults aged ≥ 60 years in Lebanon [baseline data presented here]. We employed a probability-based multi-stage sampling design in two pre-selected areas, the city of Beirut and district of Zahle, to represent the full range of urban-rural, socio-economic, and religious diversity in Lebanon. Data collection included a standardized survey questionnaire including validated cognitive tests and anthropometric measurements, a household interview, key informant assessments, and a blood sample. Survey weights were computed to account for differential non-response and calibrated for the age- and sex-distribution in the two study areas.

resultsLSAHA enrolled 3,027 participants, 1,510 from Beirut and 1,517 from Zahle, realizing a response rate of 69%. The average age of the sample was 71.7 years and 55.3% was female, 43.1% had primary education or less, while 19.9% had university training. There was a high prevalence of chronic medical conditions, such as hypertension (57.2%), heart disease (32.4%), and diabetes (32.7%). There was also a high prevalence of moderate/severe symptoms of depression (51.4%) and anxiety (34.1%). A substantial percentage reported fair or poor self-rated memory (52.1%) or having worse memory compared to 2 years ago (38.4%).

conclusionsWe successfully launched a new cohort study of older adults in Lebanon to investigate ADRD and its risk factors. Data from this study will inform clinical care and policy goals in Lebanon and other settings that face a rapidly growing number of older adults with ADRD.

Indexed as

AgingAlzheimer DiseaseDementiaHealth StatusAgedAged, 80 and overCohort StudiesFemaleHumansLebanonMaleMiddle AgedProspective StudiesAgingAlzheimer’s diseaseCohort studiesDementiaLife-course risk factorsWar exposures

Identifiers

PMID41449362
PMCPMC12849185

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.