Global Prevalence of Young-Onset Dementia Examined

TUESDAY, July 20, 2021 (HealthDay News) — The overall global age-standardized prevalence of young-onset dementia (YOD), in which symptoms start before age 65 years, is 119.0 per 100,000 population, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis published online July 19 in JAMA Neurology.

Stevie Hendricks, from Maastricht University in the Netherlands, and colleagues examined the global prevalence of YOD. The systematic review included 95 unique studies, of which 74 with 2,760,379 unique patients, were included in five-year age band meta-analyses.

The researchers observed an increase in the age-standardized prevalence estimates from 1.1 to 77.4 per 100,000 population among those aged 30 to 34 years and for those aged 60 to 64 years, respectively. In the age range of 30 to 64 years, the overall global age-standardized prevalence was 119.0 per 100,000, corresponding to 3.9 million people aged 30 to 64 years living with YOD worldwide. In subgroup analyses, the prevalence was similar for men and women (crude estimates, 216.5 and 293.1 per 100,000 population, respectively), but prevalence was lower in high- versus upper middle- and lower middle-income countries (crude estimates, 663.9 versus 1,873.6 and 764.2 per 100,000 population, respectively).

“This systematic review and meta-analysis estimated the age-standardized prevalence to be 119.0 per 100,000 population globally. Although this is higher than previously thought, it is probably an underestimation owing to lack of high-quality data,” the authors write. “This should raise awareness for policymakers and health care professionals to organize more and better care for this subgroup of individuals with dementia.”

One author disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry; one author reported ownership of a dementia screening test.

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