P3‐346: STUDY RECRUITMENT AND BASELINE CHARACTERISTICS OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL: THE FINNISH GERIATRIC INTERVENTION STUDY TO PREVENT COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT AND DISABILITY (FINGER)

Observational studies show that modifiable vascular and lifestyle-related risk factors are associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Interventions upon modifiable risk factors may prevent/postpone dementia onset, but evidence from intervention trials is lacking. Furthermore, very little information is available on the participation and non-participation in intervention trials. The Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER) tests the hypothesis that a multidomain intervention consisting of nutritional guidance, exercise training, cognitive training and intensive monitoring of vascular risk factors will prevent cognitive impairment. Here we report the details of study recruitment, and characteristics of both participants and non-participants of the trial. FINGER study is a 2-year multicentre randomized controlled trial. Participants were recruited from previous population-based non-intervention studies. The inclusion criteria were age 60-77, CAIDE dementia risk score >6 indicating presence of modifiable risk factors, and cognitive performance at the mean level or slightly lower than expected for age. 5496 participants were invited to participate, 48 % of them came to the screening visit, 1260 participants were eligible and were randomized to intervention (n=631) and control (n=629) groups. Those who did not come to the screening visit were slightly older, less educated, had more vascular risk factors present and were less physically active in the previous study than the persons who participated. At the baseline assessment the mean age of the randomized participants was 69.3 years, 47 % were women, mean MMSE was 27 points, systolic blood pressure 140.2 mmHg, diastolic blood pressure 80.4 mmHg, total serum cholesterol level 5.2 mmol/l and fasting glucose level 6.1 mmol/l. The baseline characteristics of the participants in the intervention and control groups were similar. Vascular risk factors were more common among those who did not come to the screening visit than among those came. However, several modifiable risk factors were present at baseline also among the participants indicating a window of opportunity for the intervention. FINGER study will be completed in 2014, and it is expected to provide important information on the effect of lifestyle intervention to prevent cognitive impairment.