Dementia Care Research and Psychosocial Factors

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Public Health
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Recent Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatments involve amyloid-targeting immunotherapies requiring intravenous infusions.
• Access to specialized infusion centers is crucial for the delivery of these novel AD therapies.
• Geographic and demographic disparities in healthcare access may impact treatment equity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the accessibility of infusion centers in diverse US metropolitan areas.
• To identify populations residing in "infusion deserts" (IDs) with limited access to treatment facilities.
• To assess if identified access gaps align with existing Alzheimer's disease disparities.

Main Methods:

• Selected three diverse metropolitan areas (Atlanta, Chicago, Houston) for analysis.
• Defined an "infusion desert" (ID) as an area where the nearest infusion center is over 5 miles away.
• Utilized National Infusion Center Association Locator Data and CDC PLACES data to compare demographics between IDs and non-IDs.

Main Results:

• Approximately 12% of the population in the studied areas live in IDs.
• An estimated 26,000 individuals aged 65+ with amyloid-positive early AD reside in IDs across the three cities.
• IDs exhibited higher proportions of Hispanic/Latino and Black/African American residents compared to non-IDs.

Conclusions:

• New Alzheimer's disease treatments requiring infusions are less accessible in areas with significant minority populations.
• Infusion deserts disproportionately affect Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino communities.
• These findings suggest potential inequalities in accessing novel Alzheimer's disease therapies.