1 in 12 Bangladeshi elderly have dementia: Survey
The burden is higher in Rajshahi (15%) and Rangpur (12%) than other divisions, and did not vary between urban and rural areas (8%)
One in every 12 Bangladeshi individuals aged 60 years or older have dementia according to a recent survey.
The burden is higher in Rajshahi (15%) and Rangpur (12%) than other divisions, and did not vary between urban and rural areas (8%), said a press release.
Conducted by icddr,b and in collaboration with the Non-Communicable Disease Control Programme of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and the National Institute of Neuroscience & Hospital (NINS), the survey report was published in a virtual discussion titled "The burden of dementia among older people in Bangladesh: Findings of a National Survey".
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More than half of the individuals with dementia had one or more chronic conditions (multimorbidity), including hypertension (52%), depression (54%), and diabetes (8%).
Over a third of the individuals with dementia had a poor nutritional status (35% underweight), low physical activity (49%), high salt intake (56%) and high tobacco consumption (76.6%), which is common risk factors of NCDs.
Almost all individuals with dementia reported having sought healthcare in the past six months (90%). They have also frequently visited drug sellers (16.6%) than a qualified doctor either in a private facility (12%) or a government facility (5.4%).
In order to estimate the prevalence of dementia and major non-communicable diseases in seven administrative divisions of Bangladesh, icddr,b and NINS conducted the nationwide survey during April to September 2019 on 2,796 older adults aged 60 or above.
Commenting on the importance of the study NINS Director Prof Dr Quazi Deen Mohammad, who is also the study's co-principal investigator said, "There is lack of understanding about dementia within the community hence it is diagnosed at the very late stage. We need to conduct more research on dementia to identify factors leading to a rising burden of dementia in the country and facilitate effective treatment."
The study estimated that the total number of dementia cases in Bangladesh in 2020 could be about 1.1 million, including 0.28 million males and 0.83 million females.
It also projected that the number could increase to 1.37 million in 2025 and could be doubled in 2041 (2.4 million), which may increase even further if not intervened effectively.
