Dementia in veterans and non-veterans in England: a cross-sectional survey

Concerns have been raised that military veterans are at greater risk of dementia due to increased rates of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) found in this population. The prevalence of dementia in English veterans and whether this is different to non-veterans, however, are currently unknown.

To study the risk of dementia in the English veteran population, we aimed to calculate the prevalence of dementia in a group of veterans and compare this with a similar group, with no history of military service.

Male veterans and non-veterans aged over 64 years old were identified from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, a national survey of community-dwelling adults in England. This survey was conducted via face-to-face interviews and incorporated questions on previous military service. Dementia was screened by using the modified Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status (TICS-M).

A total of 496 male veterans and 294 non-veterans were identified. TICS-M scores indicated possible dementia in 24% of veterans and 26% non-veterans; after adjusting for age, the odds of possible dementia was significantly lower in veterans than non-veterans (adjusted OR 0.56; 95% CI 0.38-0.84, P < 0.01).

English male veterans were less likely to have dementia than similar male non-veterans. This study did not find any evidence to support the view that dementia is more common in veterans than non-veterans.