Title:Acceptability and Results of Dementia Screening Among Older Adults in the United States
Volume: 15
Issue: 1
Author(s): Amanda Harrawood, Nicole R. Fowler*, Anthony J. Perkins, Michael A. LaMantia and Malaz A. Boustani
Affiliation:
- Department of Medicine, Indiana University, Center for Aging Research, Indianapolis, IN 46202,United States
Keywords:
Dementia screening, Alzheimer's disease, primary care, diagnostic assessment, memory.
Abstract: Objectives: To measure older adults acceptability of dementia screening and assess screening
test results of a racially diverse sample of older primary care patients in the United States.
Design: Cross-sectional study of primary care patients aged 65 and older.
Setting: Urban and suburban primary care clinics in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 2008 to 2009.
Participants: Nine hundred fifty-four primary care patients without a documented diagnosis of dementia.
Measurements: Community Screening Instrument for Dementia, the Mini-Mental State Examination,
and the Telephone Instrument for Cognitive Screening.
Results: Of the 954 study participants who consented to participate, 748 agreed to be screened for dementia
and 206 refused screening. The overall response rate was 78.4%. The positive screen rate of the
sample who agreed to screening was 10.2%. After adjusting for demographic differences the following
characteristics were still associated with increased likelihood of screening positive for dementia: age,
male sex, and lower education. Patients who believed that they had more memory problems than other
people of their age were also more likely to screen positive for dementia.
Conclusion: Age and perceived problems with memory are associated with screening positive for dementia
in primary care.
