Global Aspects of Alzheimer's Disease

Research suggests that both genetic and social risk factors contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Although there is a demographic, socioeconomic, and cultural risk factors that all play a role in the disease process, there remain many important questions to be answered in order to understand the underlying causes of this disease. Age, family history, gender and education-level are some of the known risk factors, but cross-cultural studies have demonstrated stated later in the blog that show significant differences in the recognition and treatment of AD .  The global rises in morbidity and mortality due to this disease have led to increases in research that examine the presentation and progression of AD from an etiologic perspective. The findings from these studies can provide important insights into the underlying causes of this complex, and lethal disease.
A cross-cultural comparison of Alzheimer’s disease can be challenging for several reasons. There are differences across countries, cultures and geographic regions [DR5] in the recognition, diagnosis, progression and treatment of AD. A study in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry found significant differences in affective symptoms, personality changes, and the ability to perform everyday activities between Pakistani and Caucasian patients diagnosed with AD.  Although several studies such as the article Karim in the  International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry which suggest differences between different cohorts, there are doubts regarding the reliability of techniques used to conduct this research across cultures. Studies have shown that one of the challenges inherent in cross-cultural research arises due to a lack of culturally sensitive instruments, which can threaten a study’s reliability and validity. A primary concern of researchers conducting cross-cultural studies is to minimize the effects of translation on test items. Some tests have been found to be fairly reliable across different cohorts, such as the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-C).

 
Despite the techniques used for determination of the disease, the increase in numbers of individuals being affected by Alzheimer’s disease is growing with the rise of life expectancy on a global scale, and the recognition of the disease has also exponentially increased. The total number of people affected by AD worldwide is estimated to be 12 million as reported by the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry in their published article by Nick Bosanquet. In a study conducted by Anita Karp (2004), the author explains how individuals in lower socioeconomic classes were at an increase rate of prevalence of the disease comparatively to middle and highly educated persons. These circumstances were reflective to the occupational based socioeconomic classes as well. The social determinants may be set in stone initially in life for each individual based on cultural or other outside modifiers, but the above studies  have been conducted to show the increase of rates associated with education and occupational limitations experienced within a lifetime.