In the fifth in PLoS Medicine's series of articles on mental, neurological and substance-use disorders in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), Martin Prince and colleagues discuss the treatment of dementia.
Globally, 24.3 million people are affected by dementia and 4.6 million new cases occur annually. The prevalence of dementia is expected to double every 20 years, reaching 81.1 million by 2040. The authors report that two-thirds of people with dementia live in LMICs, where there are few services available and levels of awareness concerning the condition, and help-seeking to treat it, are low.
The authors suggest that the principal goals for management of dementia are detecting and treating behavioral and psychological symptoms early; optimizing cognition, activity, and wellbeing; and providing information and long-term support to carers. They argue that routine packages of continuing care should be employed, comprising of diagnosis coupled with regular needs assessments, physical health checks, and carer support.
The PLoS Medicine series on mental, neurological and substance use disorders is accompanied by a related perspective by Vikram Patel and Graham Thornicroft, the Guest Editors of the series.
The series collection page is compiled on Speaking of Medicine, the PLoS Medicine blog: http://speakingofmedicine.plos.org/2009/10/12/collection-page-for-new-series-on-mental-health-in-low-and-middle-income-countries/
Funding: No specific funding was received for this piece.
Competing Interests: DA is Chair of Alzheimer's Disease International. JJ is the ex-Chief Executive of Alzheimer Scotland.
Citation: Prince MJ, Acosta D, Castro-Costa E, Jackson J, Shaji KS (2009) Packages of Care for Dementia in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. PLoS Med 6(11):e1000176. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000176
IN YOUR COVERAGE PLEASE USE THIS URL TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE FREELY AVAILABLE PAPER: http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000176
PRESS-ONLY PREVIEW OF THE ARTICLE: http://www.plos.org/press/plme-06-11-prince.pdf
CONTACT:
Martin Prince
Institute of Psychiatry
Kings College London
De Crespigny Park
London, SE3 9AJ
United Kingdom
+44 20 7848 0137
m.prince@iop.kcl.ac.uk
Perspective about the series:
Citation: Patel V, Thornicroft G (2009) Packages of Care for Mental, Neurological, and Substance Use Disorders in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. PLoS Med 6(10): e1000160. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000160
Funding: No specific funding was received for this piece.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
IN YOUR COVERAGE PLEASE USE THIS URL TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE FREELY AVAILABLE PAPER: http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000160
PRESS-ONLY PREVIEW OF THE ARTICLE: http://www.plos.org/press/plme-06-10-patel.pdf
CONTACTS:
Vikram Patel (based in Goa, India)
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Based at Sangath, Porvorim 403521, Goa, India
Tel: +91 832 241 3527
Email: vikram.patel@lshtm.ac.uk
Graham Thornicroft
Kings College London, Institute of Psychiatry, London
Tel: +44 207 848 0736
Email: graham.thornicroft@kcl.ac.uk
Journal
PLoS Medicine