Oral Vitamin B12 Supplementation and Cognitive Performance in Elderly People

June 23, 2005 updated by: Wageningen University

The Effect of Oral Vitamin B12 Supplementation on Cognitive Performance in Elderly People: the Brain12 Study

The purpose of this trial is to study the effects of oral vitamin B12 supplementation and vitamin B12 combined with folic acid supplementation on cognitive performance for 24 weeks in elderly people with mild vitamin B12 deficiency.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Mild vitamin B12 deficiency is highly prevalent in old age. Reasons for this high prevalence are not fully understood, but include atrophic gastritis and bacterial overgrowth which affect the absorption (active) of food-bound vitamin B12. In contrast, the ability to absorb crystalline vitamin B12 (e.g. the form found in fortified foods or vitamin pills) remains intact in old age. In both healthy and cognitively impaired elderly people, associations between vitamin B12 status and cognitive performance have been observed, and the follow-up of geriatric patients suggests effects of parenteral treatment in early cognitive impairment.

We investigated whether daily oral supplementation with 1,000 μg vitamin B12 or 1,000 μg vitamin B12 combined with 400 μg folate for 24 weeks improves cognitive performance in people over 70 years with vitamin B12 deficiency.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment

165

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Netherlands
    • Gelderland
      • Wageningen, Gelderland, Netherlands, 6700 EV
        • Wageningen University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

70 years and older (Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Mild vitamin B12 deficiency:

    • Low plasma vitamin B12 concentration (100 < B12 < 300 pmol/L)
    • Elevated methylmalonic acid (MMA) concentration (> 0.32 umol/L)
    • Creatinine concentration < 120 umol/L

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Severe cognitive impairment
  • Anemia
  • Gastrointestinal surgery or diseases
  • Use of vitamin B12 injections or supplements containing > 25 ug vitamin B12 and/or 200 ug folic acid
  • < 90% compliance during a 2 week placebo run in period
  • No written informed consent
  • Participation in other research studies

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Cognitive performance in the domains of attention, concentration, memory, executive function, speed

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Blood biochemistry including vitamin B12, methylmalonic acid, holotranscobalamin, homocysteine, and red blood cell folate

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Wageningen University

Collaborators

ZonMw: The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

May 1, 2003

Study Completion

January 1, 2005

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 18, 2005

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 18, 2005

First Posted (Estimate)

May 19, 2005

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

June 24, 2005

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 23, 2005

Last Verified

May 1, 2005

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • P03.0277L
  • ZonMW 2100.0067

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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