How dementia affects age
2008-01-10 20:39
London - People with dementia survive an
average four-and-a-half years after diagnosis, researchers said
on Friday in a study they hope might help care-givers plan for
patients with Alzheimer's and other, similar illnesses.
Researchers know dementia raises the risk of dying early but
the study is the first to estimate how long people are likely to
survive with the condition, said Carol Brayne, a researcher at
the Institute of Public Health at the University of Cambridge.
"This gives people a rough idea of how long they are looking
at," said Brayne, who led the study published in the British
Medical Journal. "This can add more to the information that
physicians and families have."
An estimated 24 million people worldwide have the mental
confusion marked by memory loss and problems with orientation
that signals Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.
Rise in dementia sufferers
The researchers, who said the number of people with dementia
was expected to rise to 81 million globally by 2040, studied
13 000 people aged 65 or older who were assessed for the
condition at regular intervals between 1991 to 2005.
During this time, 438 people developed dementia, of whom 81
percent died. Age, gender and disability were the main factors
determining how long a person survived, the researchers said.
Women lived for 4.6 years compared to 4.1 years for men.
There was nearly seven years difference in survival between the
youngest and oldest, with people aged 65 to 69 living 10.7 years
and those over 90 living 3.8 years, the researchers found.
"The type of care and the environment where a person is
living is also important," Brayne said in a telephone interview.
The study also found that the most frail patients died on
average three years sooner than people who are more robust, even
with age factored in.
The findings might help policy makers, families and health
professionals better plan and care for people with dementia to
determine things such as how long a person might be in an
institution, the researchers said.
"Some of these results may seem self-evident but they answer
questions asked by those caring for and advising people with
dementia," the researchers wrote.
"We hope the estimates will be valuable to patients,
clinicians, carers, service providers and policy makers."
- Reuters