Prevalence of dementia and major dementia subtypes in the Chinese populations: a meta-analysis of dementia prevalence surveys, 1980-2010.

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of dementia and its major subtypes in China. Forty-eight eligible studies were included in this review. The pooled prevalence for the population aged 60 years and older of Alzheimer's disease (AD) was 1.9%, vascular dementia (VaD) was 0.9%, and total dementia was 3.0%. The prevalence of VaD was significantly higher in Northern China than in Southern China. The prevalence of VaD was significantly higher in urban compared to rural areas. The prevalence of dementia and prevalence of AD increased with age in both males and females, and a higher prevalence of AD than VaD was observed in all age groups. AD has become more common than VaD in China since 1990. The current prevalence of dementia in China may be similar to that of developed countries.