Early Identification of Disease Promoters of Cognitive Decline Using Inflammatory, Immunologic and Cognitive Mapping (IICM)

Abstract Dementia, including Alzheimers disease, is a growing global health crisis that remains underdiagnosed, with limited treatment options available once symptoms emerge. Inflammation, vascular dysfunction, and metabolic dysregulation have been identified as key systemic promoters of cognitive decline, yet they are rarely integrated into current diagnostic workflows. We present the Inflammatory, Immunologic, and Cognitive Mapping (IICM) platform. This novel framework combines cytokine biomarker profiling, digital neurocognitive assessment, and systemic comorbidity mapping to identify root causes of decline at early and preclinical stages. In a prospective observational pilot study of 45 older adults, we developed two condition-specific indices: the Biomarker Risk Score (BRS) and Cognitive Risk Score (CRS), and two global indices of disease burden, the Global Patient Risk (GPR) and Global Cognitive Risk (GCR). Preliminary findings demonstrate the platform ability to detect early cognitive underperformance, correlate biomarker dysregulation with cognitive deficits, and identify modifiable risk factors such as pre-diabetes. Importantly, we also identified a golden hour cohort with elevated biomarker activity but preserved cognition, representing a critical window for preventive intervention. These results highlight the potential of IICM to enable earlier diagnosis, guide personalized risk stratification, and inform precision-based strategies for dementia prevention and care.