General practitioners (GPs) play a pivotal role in dementia recognition, yet research suggests that dementia often remains undetected in primary care. Lack of knowledge might be a major contributing factor to low recognition rates. Our objective was to address a gap in the scientific literature by exploring GPs' knowledge on dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) for the first time in Hungary by conducting a cross-sectional, questionnaire study among practicing GPs. Recruitment of the participants (n = 402) took place at mandatory postgraduate training courses and at national GP-conferences; the applied questionnaire was self-administered and contained both openended and fixed-response questions. Results showed that GPs highlighted vascular and metabolic factors (38.3% of the answer items) and unhealthy lifestyle (29.1% of the answer items) as dementia risk factors. They perceived vascular dementia as the most common dementia form, followed by Alzheimer's disease. Almost half of the respondents (44.9%) were not familiar with MCI. Most GPs identified memory problems (98.4%) and personality change (83.2%) as the leading symptoms of dementia. In summary, GPs demonstrated adequate knowledge on areas more relevant to their practices and scope of duties (risk and preventive factors, main types and symptoms of dementia); however, uncertainties were uncovered regarding epidemiology, MCI, and pharmacological therapy. As only one-fifth (19.4%) of the GPs could participate recently in dementia-focused trainings, continued education might be beneficial to improve dementia detection rates in primary care. Background Dementia (or major neurocognitive disorder) is a usually progressive clinical syndrome that encompasses deterioration of memory, thinking, learning, language, orientation, and behavior (American Psychiatric Association, 2013; World Health Organization, 2012). The deficits may interfere with patients' independence and affect their overall quality of life, challenging not only the families involved, but also imposing a huge economic burden on the health-care system (Wimo, Jönsson, Bond, Prince, & Winblad, 2013). Dementia currently affects about 6% of the population over the age of 60 in Europe, and the number is increasing rapidly with 4.6 million new cases every year worldwide (Ferri et al., 2005; Prince, Wimo, & Guerchet, 2015). In Hungary, the number of residents over the age of 65 has increased CONTACT Nóra Imre

Background: Dementia in the elderly constitutes a growing challenge in healthcare worldwide, including Hungary. There is no previous report on the role of general practitioners in the management of dementia. Aim: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the Hungarian general practitioners’ attitude toward their patients living with dementia as well as dementia care. Our goal was also to assess their willingness and habits in assessing dementia. Additionally we wanted to explore the role of education about dementia, and its impact on their attitude in dementia management. Methods: As part of a large survey, a self-administered questionnaire was filled out voluntarily by 402 of general practitioners. According to our preset criteria, 277 surveys were selected for evaluation. Descriptive statistical analysis and Likert-scale analysis were performed. Findings: Half of the doctors (49.8%) indicated that they conducted a test to assess cognitive functions in case of suspicion. Among the respondents who did not assess, 50.0% of physicians cited lack of time as the main reason for not doing so and 14.4% of them had not proper knowledge of testing methods. The respondents most often mentioned feelings toward their patients with dementia, were regret (Likert-scale mean: 3.33), helplessness (3.28) and sadness (3.07). The majority of physicians thought the treatment of dementia was difficult (4.46). Most of the respondents (81.2%) indicated that in the past 2 years they had not participated in any training about dementia. Those practitioners who had participated in some form of education were less likely to feel helpless facing a patient with dementia, and education also determined their approach to dementia care.

Hungarian GPs were aware of the benefits of early dementia recognition. Most GPs do not use cognitive tests for case-finding. Besides providing longer consultation times, the primary way to improve the efficacy of recognition would be to construct a cost-and time-effective dementia identification strategy applicable in GPs' practices.

Background: dementia is a significant health issue worldwide. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can transform into dementia over time. General practitioners may be the first to notice the cognitive deficit, so they may need a screening test in the event of suspicion, which they must be able to use under great time pressure. We examined the usability of the Hungarian Test Your Memory (TYM-Hun) self-administered dementia test in general practice, and with the results of the received tests, we tried to draw conclusions regarding the population. Methods: In the four Hungarian cities with medical universities, general practitioners filled out 368 questionnaires with their clients over 50 years of age. Results: the total scores of the test showed a significant correlation with education and the type of occupation, while a significant negative correlation with age. We found the clock drawing test and recall indicates cognitive decline the earliest. Based on the TYM-Hun results, the prevalence levels for MCI and dementia are slightly higher in Hungary than globally. Conclusion: the test can sensitively indicate MCI and early-stage dementia as a screening test, and two of its subtests can raise the possibility of cognitive impairment at an earlier age than the others.