Mei Zhao1, Xiaozhen Lv1, Maimaitirexiati Tuerxun1, Jincai He2, Benyan Luo3, Wei Chen4, Kai Wang5, Ping Gu6, Weihong Kuang7, Yuying Zhou8, Qiumin Qu9, Jianhua He10, Nan Zhang11, Yongping Feng12, Yanping Wang13, Xin Yu1, Huali Wang1. 1. Dementia Care & Research Center,Peking University Institute of Mental Health (Sixth Hospital);Beijing Municipal Key Laboratory for Translational Research on Diagnosis and Treatment of Dementia,Beijing 100191,China. 2. Department of Neurology,The First Affiliated Hospital,Wenzhou Medical College,Wenzhou 325000,Zhejiang Province,China. 3. Department of Neurology,The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University,Hangzhou 310003,Zhejiang Province,China. 4. Department of Psychiatry,Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital,School of Medicine,Zhejiang University,Hangzhou 310016,Zhejiang Province,China. 5. Department of Neurology,The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University,Hefei 230022,Anhui Province,China. 6. Department of Neurology,The First Hospital of Hebei Medical University,Shijiazhuang 050031,Hebei Province,China. 7. Mental Health Center,West China Hospital,Sichuan University,Chengdu 610041,Sichuan Province,China. 8. Department of Neurology,Tianjin Huanhu Hospital,Tianjin 300060,China. 9. Department of Neurology,First Affiliated Hospital of Medical College of Xi'an Jiaotong University,Xi'an 710061,Shanxi Province,China. 10. Department of Psychological Medicine,Beijing Anzhen Hospital,Capital Medical University,Beijing 100029,China. 11. Department of Neurology,General Hospital,Tianjin Medical University,Tianjin 300052,China. 12. Department of Geriatric Psychiatry,Shandong Mental Health Center,Jinan 250014,Shandong Province,China. 13. Department of Neurology,The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University,Guangzhou 510260,Guangdong Province,China.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The prevalence and factors associated with delays in help seeking for people with dementia in China are unknown. METHODS: Within 1,010 consecutively registered participants in the Clinical Pathway for Alzheimer's Disease in China (CPAD) study (NCT01779310), 576 persons with dementia (PWDs) and their informants reported the estimated time from symptom onset to first medical visit seeking diagnosis. Univariate analysis of general linear model was used to examine the potential factors associated with the delayed diagnosis seeking. RESULTS: The median duration from the first noticeable symptom to the first visit seeking diagnosis or treatment was 1.77 years. Individuals with a positive family history of dementia had longer duration (p = 0.05). Compared with other types of dementia, people with vascular dementia (VaD) were referred for diagnosis earliest, and the sequence for such delays was: VaD < Alzheimer's disease (AD) < frontotemporal dementia (FTD) (p < 0.001). Subtypes of dementia (p < 0.001), family history (p = 0.01), and education level (p = 0.03) were associated with the increased delay in help seeking. CONCLUSIONS: In China, seeking diagnosis for PWDs is delayed for approximately 2 years, even in well-established memory clinics. Clinical features, family history, and less education may impede help seeking in dementia care.
BACKGROUND: The prevalence and factors associated with delays in help seeking for people with dementia in China are unknown. METHODS: Within 1,010 consecutively registered participants in the Clinical Pathway for Alzheimer's Disease in China (CPAD) study (NCT01779310), 576 persons with dementia (PWDs) and their informants reported the estimated time from symptom onset to first medical visit seeking diagnosis. Univariate analysis of general linear model was used to examine the potential factors associated with the delayed diagnosis seeking. RESULTS: The median duration from the first noticeable symptom to the first visit seeking diagnosis or treatment was 1.77 years. Individuals with a positive family history of dementia had longer duration (p = 0.05). Compared with other types of dementia, people with vascular dementia (VaD) were referred for diagnosis earliest, and the sequence for such delays was: VaD < Alzheimer's disease (AD) < frontotemporal dementia (FTD) (p < 0.001). Subtypes of dementia (p < 0.001), family history (p = 0.01), and education level (p = 0.03) were associated with the increased delay in help seeking. CONCLUSIONS: In China, seeking diagnosis for PWDs is delayed for approximately 2 years, even in well-established memory clinics. Clinical features, family history, and less education may impede help seeking in dementia care.
Entities:
Keywords:
dementia; duration of delay; help-seeking behavior
Authors: Lucy C Beishon; Angus P Batterham; Terry J Quinn; Christopher P Nelson; Ronney B Panerai; Thompson Robinson; Victoria J Haunton Journal: Cochrane Database Syst Rev Date: 2019-12-17
Authors: Haifeng Zhang; Samantha M Loi; Shu'aijun Zhou; Mei Zhao; Xiaozhen Lv; Jing Wang; Xiao Wang; Nicola Lautenschlager; Xin Yu; Huali Wang Journal: Front Public Health Date: 2017-06-07