Background: The Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group’s (CDCIG) Specialized Register has proved a valuable study-based resource covering the treatment and management of dementia and cognitive impairment. Objectives: CDCIG was awarded a grant by The Alzheimer’s Association to develop its Specialized Register further. This development has three main objectives. The field of prevention of dementia and cognitive enhancement is a rapidly growing area of interest. The primary objective therefore is to expand the Register to include prevention and cognitive enhancement trials. The secondary object is to further expand the Register to include Diagnostic Test Accuracy (DTA) study reports. The final objective is to make the whole of the Register freely available on the web. Methods: A project team was brought together in early 2008. Immediate tasks included: the creation of new search strategies for the retrieval of prevention and cognitive enhancement trials; the creation of new search strategies for the retrieval of DTA study reports; work on defining the data to be extracted and coded from trial reports; research the technical issues to publish the register on the internet. The next phase will be to obtain relevant trial reports for data extraction and coding, populating the Register with the data, and designing the web user-interface. Conclusions: Once the project is complete, review authors, as well as other stakeholders, will have at their fingertips a unique web-based and easily searchable tool. It will group as many references related to a study as possible. They will have access to a much expanded register that covers treatment and prevention of dementia as well as cognitive enhancement and DTA study reports. Statement on funding: This project is funded by a grant awarded to CDCIG by The Alzheimer’s Association.