Alcohol-related dementia in the institutionalized elderly

• Published in: Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research Vol. 18; no. 6; p. 1330
• Main Authors: Carlen, P L, McAndrews, M P, Weiss, R T, Dongier, M, Hill, J M, Menzano, E, Farcnik, K, Abarbanel, J, Eastwood, M R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.12.1994
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alcohol Drinking - adverse effects; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Alzheimer Disease - classification; Alzheimer Disease - diagnosis; Alzheimer Disease - epidemiology; Alzheimer Disease - psychology; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dementia - classification; Dementia - diagnosis; Dementia - epidemiology; Dementia - psychology; Dementia, Vascular - classification; Dementia, Vascular - diagnosis; Dementia, Vascular - epidemiology; Dementia, Vascular - psychology; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Humans; Incidence; Institutionalization - statistics & numerical data; Long-Term Care - statistics & numerical data; Male; Mental Status Schedule - statistics & numerical data; Middle Aged; Neuropsychological Tests - statistics & numerical data; Ontario - epidemiology; Psychometrics; Psychoses, Alcoholic - classification; Psychoses, Alcoholic - diagnosis; Psychoses, Alcoholic - epidemiology; Psychoses, Alcoholic - psychology; Ontario
• ISSN: 0145-6008
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1994.tb01432.x

This study examined the distribution of alcohol-related and other dementias in a sample of 130 cognitively impaired residents of long-term care facilities in a Northern Ontario community. Study procedures entailed standardized psychiatric, neurological, and neuropsychological evaluations. Diagnoses of dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) and vascular dementia were based on criteria of the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke and the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Association. The diagnosis of alcohol-related dementia (ARD) was based on extensive review of medical history to assess before alcohol abuse and stabilization or improvement in cognitive functioning following institutionalization in conjunction with no other identifiable cause of dementia. ARD comprised 24% of this population compared with DAT (35%), vascular dementia (19%), and other causes (22%). The ARD group was, on average, 10 years younger than the other groups. It had nearly twice the average length of institutionalization and had milder cognitive impairment on both clinical ratings and neuropsychological tests. A diagnosis of ARD was present in the medical records for only 25% of patients in this group. These findings suggest that ARD may be more common than previously suspected in the distribution of dementias in long-term care facilities.