Aims: To estimate dementia prevalence and describe the etiology of dementia in a community sample from the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Methods: A sample of subjects older than 60 years was screened for dementia in the first phase. During the second phase, the diagnostic workup included a structured interview, physical and neurological examination, laboratory exams, a brain scan, and DSM-IV criteria diagnosis. Results: Mean age was 71.5 years (n = 1,563) and 58.3% had up to 4 years of schooling (68.7% female). Dementia was diagnosed in 107 subjects with an observed prevalence of 6.8%. The estimate of dementia prevalence was 12.9%, considering design effect, nonresponse during the community phase, and positive and negative predictive values. Alzheimer’s disease was the most frequent cause of dementia (59.8%), followed by vascular dementia (15.9%). Older age and illiteracy were significantly associated with dementia. Conclusions: The estimate of dementia prevalence was higher than previously reported in Brazil, with Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia being the most frequent causes of dementia. Dementia prevalence in Brazil and in other Latin American countries should be addressed by additional studies to confirm these higher dementia rates which might have a sizable impact on countries’ health services.
The results of this study underscore the importance of considering the level of education in the analysis of cognitive performance in depressed elderly patients, as well as the relevance of developing new cognitive function tests in which level of education has a reduced impact on the results.
This version of STAGED seems to be a useful strategy for treatment of depression in late life. Baseline general cognitive performance might be useful to predict remission of depression in older patients with mild to moderate depression. Further research with different population characteristics should be conducted in order to evaluate its usefulness and feasibility in different settings.
This is a study on burden of caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s disease
attended at a Reference Center for Cognitive Disorders.ObjectiveTo evaluate the profile and burden on caregivers of patients with Alzheimer’s
disease attended at a Reference Center for Cognitive Disorders.MethodsWe collected demographic information and data on the relationship with the
patient from caregivers, and measured burden with the Zarit scale. The
patients were evaluated with the following scales: the Cambridge Cognitive
Test (CAMCOG); Mini Mental State Examination, the Neuropsychiatric Inventory
for neuropsychiatry symptoms, and Functional Activities Questionnaire - FAQ
for functional impairment.ResultsOf the 31 caregivers, 77.4% were female, predominantly, and daughters, having
a mean age of 58.6 years, educational level of 8.1 years, 70% of caregivers
co-resided with the patient and 71% did not work. The mean time as a
caregiver was 3 years. Twenty-seven percent of the caregivers presented mild
to severe burden. The variables presenting significant association with
caregiver burden were scores on the NPI and CAMCOG.ConclusionThe social demographic characteristics of the sample were similar to those of
studies performed in other countries. The average time as a caregiver and
the frequency of caregivers with mild to intense burden were lower than
those reported in international studies. Neuropsychiatric symptoms and
severity of cognitive decline were the main factors associated to burden in
this sample of mostly mild to moderate demented AD patients. Further studies
are necessary to verify whether the burden is indeed less intense in our
milieu.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.