Dataset Information

An estimate of the prevalence of dementia in Africa: A systematic analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The burden of non-communicable diseases is growing, particularly in developing countries. The greatest economic burden is due to dementia, the prevalence of which is rising with increasing longevity. In Africa, where the rate of increase of elderly persons is the fastest in the world, dementia is normally dismissed as a part of normal ageing. The lack of awareness means that many patients are suffering undiagnosed. This review aims to assess the information on the prevalence of dementia in Africa in order to estimate the current burden.

Methods

A parallel search of Medline, EMBASE and Global Health limited to post-1980 found only 10 relevant studies. Data on prevalence and risk factors were extracted and analysed. We modelled the available information and used the UN population figures for Africa to determine the age-specific and overall burden of dementia.

Results

The overall prevalence of dementia in adults older than 50 years in Africa was estimated to be about 2.4%, which translates to 2.76 million people living with a disease in 2010. About 2.10 millions of them live in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prevalence was the highest among females aged 80 and over (19.7%) and there was little variation between regions. Alzheimer disease was the most prevalent cause of dementia (57.1%) followed by vascular dementia (26.9%). The main risk factors were increasing age, female sex and cardiovascular disease.

Conclusions

Information on dementia prevalence in Africa is very limited. Further research will not only provide a more reliable estimate of prevalence, and consequently the burden of disease, but will also raise awareness of the problem. This is critical in promoting help-seeking behaviour and generating the political commitment to make dementia a public health priority in Africa.

SUBMITTER: George-Carey R

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3529309 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

An estimate of the prevalence of dementia in Africa: A systematic analysis.

George-Carey Rhiannon R Adeloye Davies D Chan Kit Yee KY Paul Abigail A Kolčić Ivana I Campbell Harry H Rudan Igor I

Journal of global health 20121201 2

<h4>Background</h4>The burden of non-communicable diseases is growing, particularly in developing countries. The greatest economic burden is due to dementia, the prevalence of which is rising with increasing longevity. In Africa, where the rate of increase of elderly persons is the fastest in the world, dementia is normally dismissed as a part of normal ageing. The lack of awareness means that many patients are suffering undiagnosed. This review aims to assess the information on the prevalence o ...[more]

PMID: 23289076

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Project description:AimTo estimate and compare asthma prevalence in Africa in 1990, 2000, and 2010 in order to provide information that will help inform the planning of the public health response to the disease.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search of Medline, EMBASE, and Global Health for studies on asthma published between 1990 and 2012. We included cross-sectional population based studies providing numerical estimates on the prevalence of asthma. We calculated weighted mean prevalence and applied an epidemiological model linking age with the prevalence of asthma. The UN population figures for Africa for 1990, 2000, and 2010 were used to estimate the cases of asthma, each for the respective year.ResultsOur search returned 790 studies. We retained 45 studies that met our selection criteria. In Africa in 1990, we estimated 34.1 million asthma cases (12.1%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 7.2-16.9) among children <15 years, 64.9 million (11.8%; 95% CI 7.9-15.8) among people aged <45 years, and 74.4 million (11.7%; 95% CI 8.2-15.3) in the total population. In 2000, we estimated 41.3 million cases (12.9%; 95% CI 8.7-17.0) among children <15 years, 82.4 million (12.5%; 95% CI 5.9-19.1) among people aged <45 years, and 94.8 million (12.0%; 95% CI 5.0-18.8) in the total population. This increased to 49.7 million (13.9%; 95% CI 9.6-18.3) among children <15 years, 102.9 million (13.8%; 95% CI 6.2-21.4) among people aged <45 years, and 119.3 million (12.8%; 95% CI 8.2-17.1) in the total population in 2010. There were no significant differences between asthma prevalence in studies which ascertained cases by written and video questionnaires. Crude prevalences of asthma were, however, consistently higher among urban than rural dwellers.ConclusionOur findings suggest an increasing prevalence of asthma in Africa over the past two decades. Due to the paucity of data, we believe that the true prevalence of asthma may still be under-estimated. There is a need for national governments in Africa to consider the implications of this increasing disease burden and to investigate the relative importance of underlying risk factors such as rising urbanization and population aging in their policy and health planning responses to this challenge.

Project description:Despite the recent increasing worldwide attention towards pulmonary hypertension (PH), its epidemiology remains poorly described in Africa. Accordingly, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of PH prevalence, incidence and etiologies in Africa.We searched PubMed, EMBASE, African Journals Online, and Africa Index Medicus. Published observational studies until September 20, 2017, including adult participants residing in Africa were considered. Two review authors independently selected studies, assessed included studies for methodological quality, and extracted data. A random-effects model was used for meta-analysis. Heterogeneity was evaluated by the ? 2 test on Cochrane's Q statistic which is quantified by I2 values. Using Newcastle-Ottawa Scale, we considered a score of 0-4, 5-7, and 8-10 as indicative of high, moderate, and low risk of bias in included studies, respectively.Of 1611 entries, 25 studies were retained. Twelve (48%), seven (28%), and six (24%) papers had respectively a low, moderate and high risk of bias. The prevalence of PH widely varied across different populations: 9.8% (95% confidence interval: 3.2-19.3; I2?=?99.4%; 6 studies) in 11,163 people presenting with cardiac complaints; 10.6% (4.3-19.1; I2?=?90.3%; 4 studies) in 937 HIV-infected people; 32.9% (17.6-50.4; I2?=?97.2%; 3 studies) in 2077 patients with heart failure; 23.2% (15.2-32.2; I2?=?59.4%; 3 studies) in 248 patients on hemodialysis; 12.9% (11.8-14.0; I2?=?79.7%; 2 studies) in 3750 patients with rheumatic heart disease; 36.9% (29.7-44.3; I2?=?79.7; 2 studies) in 79 patients with sickle cell disease; 62.7% (49.0-74.7; 1 study) in 51 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; 25.4% (16.3-37.3; 1 study) in 63 patients with systemic lupus erythematous; 68.7% (62.8-74.1; 1 study) in 259 patients with cardiac surgery; and 7.4% (4.6-11.9; 1 study) in 202 patients with systemic sclerosis. No study reported PH incidence. From one international study (n?=?209), PH etiologies were: left heart disease (68.9%), pulmonary arterial hypertension (15.8%), lung disease and/or hypoxia (12.0%), chronic thromboembolic PH (1.9%) and unclear/multifactorial PH (15.8%).The prevalence of PH is relatively high in some populations in Africa, perhaps mainly driven by left heart diseases, highlighting the need for context-specific interventions.

Project description:ObjectiveIn this systematic review, we estimate the prevalence of six types of arthritis in Africa; namely rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, juvenile arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, gout, and ankylosing spondylitis.MethodsWe comprehensively searched literature on 31 August 2014 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library to identify eligible studies from 1975 up to 31 July 2014. Two review authors independently selected studies, extracted data, and appraised studies. We carried out random effects meta-analysis of prevalence of arthritis and assessed heterogeneity through subgroup analyses. We performed separate analyses for population- and hospital-based studies, as well as rural and urban settings.Main findingsWe included 27 cross-sectional studies (20 population-based and 7 hospital-based) from Africa reporting on the prevalence of arthritis. The majority of the studies were from South Africa (44.4%, 12/27). Rheumatoid arthritis in urban settings ranged from 0.1% in Algeria, 0.6% in the DRC, to a meta-analysis overall prevalence of 2.5% in South Africa, and in rural settings ranged from a meta-analysis overall prevalence of 0.07% in South Africa, 0.3% in Egypt, to 0.4% in Lesotho. Osteoarthritis was the most prevalent form of arthritis and in urban settings it was 55.1% in South Africa and in rural settings, all in South Africa, ranged from 29.5%, 29.7%, up to 82.7% among adults aged over 65 years. Other results include highest prevalence of 33.1% for knee osteoarthritis in rural South Africa, 0.1% for ankylosing spondylitis in rural South Africa, 4.4% for psoriatic arthritis in urban South Africa, 0.7% for gout in urban South Africa, and 0.3% for juvenile idiopathic arthritis in urban Egypt. A third of the included studies had a low risk of bias (33.3%, 9/27), 40.8% (11/27) moderate risk, and 25.9% (7/27) had a high risk of bias.ConclusionsIn this systematic review, we have identified the paucity of latest prevalence data on arthritis in Africa. More studies are needed to address the prevalence and the true burden of this disease in Africa.

Project description:ImportanceReliable prevalence estimates are lacking for young-onset dementia (YOD), in which symptoms of dementia start before the age of 65 years. Such estimates are needed for policy makers to organize appropriate health care.ObjectiveTo determine the global prevalence of YOD.Data sourcesThe PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycInfo databases were systematically searched for population-based studies on the prevalence of YOD published between January 1, 1990, and March 31, 2020.Study selectionStudies containing data on the prevalence of dementia in individuals younger than 65 years were screened by 2 researchers for inclusion in a systematic review and meta-analysis.Data extraction and synthesisPrevalence estimates on 5-year age bands, from 30 to 34 years to 60 to 64 years, were extracted. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted to pool prevalence estimates. Results were age standardized for the World Standard Population. Heterogeneity was assessed by subgroup analyses for sex, dementia subtype, study design, and economic status based on the World Bank classification and by meta-regression.Main outcomes and measuresPrevalence estimates of YOD for 5-year age bands.ResultsA total of 95 unique studies were included in this systematic review, of which 74 with 2 760 379 unique patients were also included in 5-year age band meta-analyses. Studies were mostly conducted in Europe and in older groups in Asia, North America, and Oceania. Age-standardized prevalence estimates increased from 1.1 per 100 000 population in the group aged 30 to 34 years to 77.4 per 100 000 population in the group aged 60 to 64 years. This gives an overall global age-standardized prevalence of 119.0 per 100 000 population in the age range of 30 to 64 years, corresponding to 3.9 million people aged 30 to 64 years living with YOD in the world. Subgroup analyses showed prevalence between men and women to be similar (crude estimates for men, 216.5 per 100 000 population; for women, 293.1 per 100 000 population), whereas prevalence was lower in high-income countries (crude estimate, 663.9 per 100 000 population) compared with upper-middle-income (crude estimate, 1873.6 per 100 000 population) and lower-middle-income (crude estimate, 764.2 per 100 000 population) countries. Meta-regression showed that age range (P < .001), sample size (P < .001), and study methodology (P = .02) significantly influenced heterogeneity between studies.Conclusions and relevanceThis systematic review and meta-analysis found an age-standardized prevalence of YOD of 119.0 per 100 000 population, although estimates of the prevalence in low-income countries and younger age ranges remain scarce. These results should help policy makers organize sufficient health care for this subgroup of individuals with dementia.Study registrationPROSPERO CRD42019119288.

Dataset Information

An estimate of the prevalence of dementia in Africa: A systematic analysis.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

An estimate of the prevalence of dementia in Africa: A systematic analysis.

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