Cognitive function in older adults with stroke: A latent profile analysis

•Heterogeneity in cognitive function in older adults with stroke.•Three meaningful cognitive function subgroups in older adults with stroke were identified.•Influencing factors contribute to future research and targeted interventions. Post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) is one of the major complications after a stroke. Therefore, it is necessary to identify different categories of cognitive function in older adults with stroke and to explore factors associated with different levels of cognitive function in older adults after stroke. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using convenience sampling to collect data from 1076 older adults with stroke from 5 hospitals in Lanzhou City, Gansu Province, China, from June 2022 to August 2023. Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was used to identify cognitive function subgroups among older adults with stroke, and multinomial logistic regression was used to analyze the related factors. 1076 older adults with stroke were identified and classified as class-1: cognitive impairment, class-2: mild cognitive impairment, class-3: normal cognitive function. Age, gender, education level, hemorrhagic stroke, cerebrovascular disease are associated with different levels of cognitive function in older adults after stroke. These findings highlight the heterogeneity of cognitive function in older adults with stroke. Our research could assist healthcare professionals in China to identify older adults with a high risk of cognitive impairment and to develop individualized interventions based on their characteristics.