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<p><strong>Objective </strong>To study the differences between Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD) in the levels of plasma homocysteine (Hcy), serum uric acid (UA) and serum  C-reactive protein (CRP).  <strong>Methods</strong> A total of 56 AD patients, 122 VaD patients and 100 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. The levels of plasma Hcy, serum UA and CRP were detected by direct chemiluminescence assay and enzymatic method, and analyzed among 3 groups.  <strong>Results</strong> The plasma Hcy levels in AD group [13.41 (9.98, 17.77) μ mol/L] and VaD group [13.00 (10.87, 17.13) μ mol/L] were significantly higher than that in control group [9.92 (8.26, 12.09) μmol/L; <em>P </em>= 0.000, for all). The serum CRP levels in AD group [1.37 (0.38, 4.60) mg/L] were significantly lower than that in control group [4.55 (1.55, 8.40) mg/L, <em>P </em> = 0.002] and VaD group [3.30 (1.20, 12.25) mg/L, <em>P </em> = 0.006].  <strong>Conclusions</strong> Plasma homocysteine might be the common risk factor for both AD and VaD, and hyperhomocysteinemia may accelerate the progression of dementia. Detection of C-reactive protein may help to differentiate AD and VaD in clinical practice.</p><p> </p><p><strong>DOI: </strong><span>10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2015.08.008</span></p>