| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2014 | Volume
: 1
| Issue : 4 | Page : 245-249 |
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Prevalence of possible Alzheimer's disease in an urban elderly population of Ludhiana: A pilot study
Neena Bhatti, Paramita Sengupta, Anoop Ivan Benjamin
Department of Community Medicine, Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, India
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Paramita Sengupta
Professor of Community Medicine, Christian Medical College, Ludhiana - 141 008, Punjab
India
 Source of Support: ICMR-STS 2010., Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/2348-3334.142988
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Background : Dementias in the elderly, of which Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form, may emerge as important public health problems in the elderly in low-resource developing countries whose populations are ageing rapidly. Aims: 1. To find out the prevalence of possible AD in the elderly population of an urban area of Ludhiana. 2. To identify major socio-demographic risk factors for "possible AD" in the population under study. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on >60 year old residents of an urban area of Ludhiana. Data was collected from 200 consenting individuals chosen by simple random sampling, using a pre-tested questionnaire with standardized batteries, "10 Warning Signs of Alzheimer's Disease" to screen for possible AD, Everyday Abilities Scale for India (EASI) to assess physical impairment and the Hindi version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) to assess cognitive impairment. The presence of >1 warning signs was considered as "possible AD", EASI score >3 as "functional impairment" and MMSE score <24 as "cognitive impairment". A respondent with "possible AD" as well as cognitive and functional impairment was labelled as "probable AD". Results: The prevalence of "possible AD" in the study population was 12.0% and "probable AD" 2.0%. Higher age (>80-years-old) was observed to be a significant risk factor for "possible AD" [odd ratio (OR) = 3.93, confidence interval (CI) = 1.10-13.26). Gender, educational status, marital status, family type, employment status, and addictions were not found to be statistically significant risk factors (P > 0.05). One-third of those with "possible AD" had "probable AD". Those with "possible AD" were at high risk of having functional impairment (OR = 17.10, 95%, CI = 5.00-58.46). |
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