Migrants seeking help for cognitive disturbances: exploratory data from an Italian memory clinic

• Published in: Neurological sciences Vol. 40; no. 4; pp. 857 - 859
• Main Authors: Canevelli, Marco, Zaccaria, Valerio, Ruocco, Ciro, Valletta, Martina, Gasparini, Marina, Vanacore, Nicola, Cesari, Matteo, Bruno, Giuseppe
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.04.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Ambulatory Care Facilities - statistics & numerical data; Brief Communication; Cognitive ability; Cognitive Dysfunction - epidemiology; Dementia; Dementia - epidemiology; Dementia disorders; Developing Countries - statistics & numerical data; Emigrants and Immigrants - statistics & numerical data; Female; Humans; Italy - epidemiology; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Memory; Memory Disorders - epidemiology; Neurology; Neuroradiology; Neurosciences; Neurosurgery; Patient Acceptance of Health Care - statistics & numerical data; Psychiatry; Public health; Statistical analysis; Italy; Cross-cultural; Developing countries; Cognitive disorders; Migrants; Dementia; Health disparities
• ISSN: 1590-1874; 1590-3478; 1590-3478
• DOI: 10.1007/s10072-018-3663-0

Introduction The phenomenon of dementia occurring in migrants and minority groups constitutes an emerging issue for Western countries. Nevertheless, it has been poorly explored from the perspective of “real-world” clinical services. We aimed to quantify the number of migrants from LMIC attending an Italian university memory clinic and to document its modifications over time. Methods All the subjects undergoing a first neurological and cognitive assessment between 2001 and 2017 were considered for the present analyses. Results The proportion of subjects from LMIC performing a first cognitive evaluation was found to remain substantially stable between 2001 and 2017. No statistically significant difference was found between “HIC” and “LMIC” individuals with regard to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Conclusion These findings seem to indicate that cognitive disorders in LMIC migrants still constitute a marginal public health issues for Italian dementia services. Nevertheless, the identification of eventual sociocultural and healthcare barriers may help to understand the real magnitude and relevance of this phenomenon.