Make Twice the Impact This World Alzheimer’s Day
Make Twice the Impact This World Alzheimer’s Day
Double your impact during our World Alzheimer’s Day 2x Match Challenge. Your gift before midnight on Sept. 21 can go twice as far to accelerate research and help provide care and support for millions affected by Alzheimer’s.
Donate NowAlzheimer’s Association and World Dementia Council Convene Latin American Regional Meeting to Integrate Brain Health Evidence into People’s Lives
— Held in Buenos Aires, the meeting will bring together experts from across Latin America to advance next steps following the results of the LatAm-FINGERS trial —
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Sept. 16, 2026 — On Sept. 16 and 17, Buenos Aires will be the site of the Brain Health and Cognition in Latin America meeting, both in person and virtually, organized by the Alzheimer's Association in partnership with the World Dementia Council (WDC). The meeting will bring together more than 100 physicians, researchers and representatives from public and private health systems across the region to address a central question: how to translate scientific evidence on brain health into concrete policies and programs.The meeting comes at a key moment. The LatAm-FINGERS and U.S. POINTER studies have provided compelling new evidence on the benefits that a structured program of healthy lifestyle changes can have on cognitive health. These findings open a new chapter: determining how to adapt, implement and scale these strategies across the diverse contexts of Latin America.
“The meeting in Buenos Aires will highlight how the evidence from the LatAm-FINGERS and U.S. POINTER studies is being translated into real-world practice through implementation efforts in doctor’s offices, health care systems and communities across Latin America and the United States,” said Maria C. Carrillo, Ph.D., Alzheimer’s Association chief science officer and medical affairs lead.
“Leadership across Latin America in partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association and others are deeply committed to continued investment in the region, extending the research studies, and implementing their findings. We all are committed to partnership and personally engaging in the process,” said Lucia Crivelli, Ph.D., leader of the LatAm-FINGERS study and principal investigator at Fleni, a neurological institute in Buenos Aires.
Over the past decade, the Alzheimer's Association with regional scientific and clinical leaders has convened the region's scientists through a recurring series of AAIC Satellite Symposia, and helped establish the collaborations and biomarker validation work the region needed to grow and thrive. In that time, the Association has quadrupled its research funding in Latin America. The clearest result is LatAm-FINGERS, the first dementia risk reduction/prevention trial of its kind in Latin America.
“The meeting aims to strengthen partnerships among researchers, clinicians, health care providers, governments, advocacy organizations and community leaders,” said Paulo Caramelli, professor of neurology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and vice chair, World Dementia Council. “Highly credible research findings — such as we have now — can inform policy, strengthen prevention efforts and support brain health initiatives at the local, national and regional levels starting right here in Latin America.”
The first day, Sept. 16, will include scientific presentations, implementation case studies from Latin American countries and the United States, and panels featuring leaders from governments, health systems, and global health organizations. The focus will be on scaling evidence-based approaches to promote healthy cognitive aging across the region. The second day, Sept. 17, will be led by the World Dementia Council and will focus on translating this scientific evidence into public policy.
Confirmed speakers will include representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and the United States. Discussions will address the challenges of extending programs to diverse and underserved populations, as well as the role of governments, health systems, and international organizations in financing and coordinating prevention policies across the region.
Background: LatAm-FINGERS and U.S. POINTER
In July 2026, LatAm-FINGERS, the first randomized, multicenter clinical trial conducted in Latin America on the prevention of cognitive decline, announced its results. After two years of follow-up involving 1,065 participants between the ages of 60 and 77 across 11 countries in the region (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay), the group that received a structured multidomain intervention — based on physical activity, healthy eating, management of cardiovascular risk factors, cognitive training, and social engagement — showed 55% greater cognitive improvement than the group that received general health advice.
The study, funded by the Alzheimer's Association, was published in The Lancet and presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC) 2026. In July 2025, the U.S.-based U.S. POINTER study, also funded and led by the Alzheimer’s Association, reported cognitive benefits associated with similar structured interventions, opening the door to an unprecedented collaboration between the two regions. LatAm-FINGERS and the U.S. POINTER trial are closely related studies, with LatAm-FINGERS having specific cultural, dietary and language adaptations for the countries involved.
About the Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer’s Association is a worldwide voluntary health organization dedicated to Alzheimer’s care, support and research. Our mission is to lead the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia — by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's and all other dementia®. Visit alz.org or call 800.272.3900.
About the World Dementia Council
The World Dementia Council was established by the UK government following the G8 Dementia Summit held in London in 2013. Its mission is twofold: first, as a think tank to shape and strengthen global public policy on dementia; and second, to connect a diverse and international community committed to this goal, from bench scientists and health system leaders to advocates and community activists.
About Brain Health and Cognition in Latin America
The meeting aims to accelerate the implementation of effective, evidence-based brain health interventions and advance a coordinated public policy agenda at the regional and global levels. Ultimately, the meeting will serve as a platform to translate scientific evidence into concrete action and advance a shared vision for healthier cognitive aging in Latin America and around the world.