Factors associated with dementia in elderly

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Neurology
• Public Health

Background:

• Dementia prevalence is increasing globally, necessitating research into associated risk factors.
• Understanding modifiable factors is crucial for developing effective public health interventions.
• Memory outpatient clinics provide valuable data for studying dementia in elderly populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify factors associated with dementia diagnosis in elderly patients.
• To investigate the relationship between serum vitamin D levels and dementia.
• To explore the role of comorbidities like hypertension and depression in dementia.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study analyzing medical records from a memory outpatient clinic.
• Logistic regression analysis was used for crude and adjusted associations.
• Key variables included serum vitamin D, age, gender, skin color, schooling, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and depression.

Main Results:

• The prevalence of dementia was 16.72% among the 287 elderly participants.
• Independent factors associated with dementia were lower vitamin D levels (OR=0.92), depression (OR=4.09), hypertension (OR=2.65), and age 80+ (OR=3.97).
• Depression (42.50%) and hypertension (31.71%) were the most prevalent comorbidities.

Conclusions:

• Dementia diagnosis in the elderly is associated with lower serum vitamin D levels.
• Vitamin D is a potentially modifiable factor, offering public health opportunities for dementia prevention strategies.
• Comorbidities such as depression and hypertension are significant risk factors for dementia.