Dementia and its associated factors among the elderly in Kerala: A facility based case control study

Dr PRIYA VIJAYAKUMAR; Dr. JISHNU SATHEESH LALU; AMAL.V.NAIR

Volume : IX, Issue : II, February - 2019

Dementia and its associated factors among the elderly in Kerala: A facility based case control study

Dr Priya Vijayakumar, Dr. Jishnu Satheesh Lalu, Amal. V. Nair

Abstract :

Back Ground: Dementia is construed as a normal part of ageing and is being neglected at the primary level of health care. Objective : To study the risk factors of Dementia in elder population in Kerala Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted among the out patients attending Geriatrics department of Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi. Cases of Dementia were identified by screening the patients using Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE) questionnaire which has a sensitivity of 76% and specificity of 94%.12) MMSE cut off score as 23 out of 30 was taken.. The screened patients were clinically diagnosed by a Neurologist before including in the study. The comparative group was selected adjusting to age and gender [+5 years]. A semi–structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the informant preferably spouse. Results : 48% of the respondents belonged to the age group of 65–74. Majority (55.7%) were females. 2.9% were illiterates. Multivariate analysis was done to create a model for predicting the risk factors of Dementia. Living alone was found to be strongly associated (aOR18.95(95% CI 3.49–102.74)) independent factor of Dementia among elderly. Conclusion: This is a facility based case control study of elderly population. Our study was contented with strong evidence on the predictive factors of Dementia. These findings may be used for selecting individuals for dementia screening programs