Promise and peril of claims-based dementia ascertainment in causal inference

Absent effective disease-modifying therapies for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), measures to prevent incident disease, delay symptom onset and prolong functional independence are paramount. Identifying effective preventive measures and care delivery models, in turn, requires improved information regarding modifiable risk factors and corresponding population-level interventions that may alter the trajectory of ADRD. In many countries, including the USA, administrative data offer a singular means of studying these relationships in large and representative populations.