GPs failing to diagnose dementia early
Patients could be missing out on early treatment options for dementia because GPs are failing to diagnose the condition early enough, according to British research.
The study, the first of its kind to analyse life expectancy after dementia is recorded by GPs, also shows that survival rates are much lower for those diagnosed by their GP than those who are actively screened for dementia in research studies.
According to the research, for patients aged 60-69 the average life expectancy once diagnosed with dementia by their GPs was 6.7 years. Previous MRC research has shown that people in a comparable age range, actively screened for dementia as part of a research study, have a life expectancy of 10.7 years.
The findings also revealed that mortality rates are more than three times higher in people with dementia in the first year after GP diagnosis, than in those without dementia. Scientists suggest this indicates GP diagnoses were made at times of crisis or much later in the lifecycle of the disease.
Dr Greta Rait from the Medical Research Council (MRC) who led the study said, “Until now, most survival estimates have come from studies where people have been actively screened for dementia but the reality is that medical care for dementia patients tends to fall with family doctors.
“Our findings will help clinicians to make more realistic estimates of life expectancy for patients when they are diagnosed and also assist policymakers in planning services.
“GPs are going to be dealing with more and more dementia cases in future and primary care must get better at detection. It’s therefore essential we conduct reviews and research like this,” she said.
Achieving goals empowers people with dementia
Achieving personal goals can help people in the early stages of dementia manage their condition, Alzheimer’s Society research published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry has found.
Researchers at Bangor University in Wales, found that people who received cognitive rehabilitation felt their performance of daily activities improved. Carers of those receiving the treatment also noted an improvement in their own quality of life.
Cognitive rehabilitation is a treatment where people with dementia work with health professionals to identify personal goals and develop strategies for achieving them.
Goals were tailored to the participants’ specific needs and included things such as remembering details of jobs to be done around the house, maintaining concentration when cooking, learning to use a mobile phone and remembering the names of people at an exercise class.
The cognitive rehabilitation group said they saw an improvement in their ability to carry out all of the chosen activities.
Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at Alzheimer’s Society says, “This valuable piece of research is the first trial of its kind to evaluate the effectiveness of the ‘cognitive rehabilitation’ technique. The exciting findings indicate that achieving personal goals can help people with dementia feel more independent, more confident doing everyday tasks and more in control of their lives.
“The findings provide a basis for a larger study of cognitive rehabilitation as a means of assisting people in the early stages of dementia and their families to better manage the condition.”
Professor Linda Clare, who led the research, says, “We found that the brains of participants who received cognitive rehabilitation did show different responses after the intervention. This suggests that the treatment may have stimulated greater activity in certain brain areas and networks, reactivating some areas that were under-functioning due to the effects of the disease”.
