Bilingualism as a protective factor associated with the delayed onset of the clinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease
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Autor
Rivera Delpín, Gladiliz
Advisor
Dávila Marrero, ElixmahirTipo
ThesisDegree Level
M.A.Fecha
2023-12-05Metadatos
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Motivated by the Cognitive Reserve (CR) theory, this systematic review examines the relationship between bilingualism and the onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Based on an extensive examination of the literature, this thesis shows a consistent pattern indicating that bilingual people experience delayed onset AD symptoms in comparison to their monolingual peers. With delays ranging from 3.2 to 7.2 years in the onset of cognitive symptoms and clinical complaints related to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD, multiple studies consistently show a temporal advantage for bilinguals. These delays occur in a variety of linguistic and cultural circumstances. According to the research, bilingualism may improve CR and function as a protective factor. According to the CR hypothesis, learning mentally demanding skills like two languages helps to strengthen neural resilience, which delays the onset of cognitive decline linked to AD. Delays in diagnosing single-domain aMCI cases, but not those involving multiple domains, indicate that this protection is present across a variety of cognitive domains. Even if these findings point to the possible advantages of bilingualism, it's important to recognize the limitations and complications of the available research. Mixed results could be caused by differences in study techniques, participant characteristics, and language variables. In addition, there are other intrinsic limitations to the current systematic review, such as potential publication bias, a narrow scope for language coverage, and differences in the quality of the studies. Future studies should use standardized procedures, take into consideration potential confounding variables, and include a variety of language communities in order to overcome these constraints. Furthermore, research on the underlying neurobiological mechanisms—such as those inferred from studies on gray matter density and biomarkers of cerebrospinal fluid—may shed more light on the benefits of bilingualism. This thesis concludes that there is a continuous trend indicating that bilingualism may actually be beneficial in delaying the onset of AD symptoms. This finding has important implications for cognitive health and may open up new research and treatment options.