Brazilian SuperAgers: prevalence and demographic profile

• Grant number: 25/16155-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 01, 2025
• End date: November 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Natalia Gomes Gonçalves
• Grantee: Larissa Lima Silva Pires Fischer
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In Brazil, the aging rate nearly doubled between 2010 and 2022, particularly among individuals aged 80 years or older. Among conditions associated with aging, dementia exhibits high prevalence and incidence, which increases with advanced age, and for which no curative treatment is currently available. Consequently, prevention represents the primary strategy, emphasizing factors related to cognitive resilience, particularly those associated with exceptional cognitive aging. Superagers are individuals aged 80 years or older who exhibit cognitive performance comparable to that of adults 20 to 30 years younger. Studies indicate that these older adults possess distinct structural and functional brain differences compared to typical older adults. However, the majority of evidence originates from high-income countries, limiting the generalizability of findings to populations in low and middle-income countries, such as Brazil. Therefore, the aim of this study is to estimate the proportion of superagers within the Brazilian population and to identify factors associated with this group. To achieve this, we will use data from the second wave of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brasil), collected in 2019. This sample comprises 9,949 participants, all aged 50 years or older, of both sexes, and residing throughout Brazil. We will select a sample of superagers and cognitively typical older adults based on their performance on a cognitive test battery. We will describe the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of superagers in Brazil. We will also investigate if lifetime transitions between rural and urban areas are associated with cognitive performance in superagers and typical older adults. For this, we will conduct. multinomial logistic regression to investigate the association between residence transition history and cognitive function, adjusting for sociodemographic and clinical factors. The results of this study will contribute to informing public policies aimed at reducing health inequalities among older adults. (AU)