Dementia in Australian Indigenous Population Alarmingly High

Dementia in Elderly Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders

According to Alzheimer’s Australia, Dementia is a major health problem for our indigenous people. Researchers found that dementia among indigenous people living in rural and remote areas of Australia could be 4-5 times higher than those in the general Australian community.

A cognitive screening tool was developed and used to research dementia affecting indigenous people of the Kimberly region; Kimberley Indigenous Cognitive Assessment (KICA) regional urban, found approximately 2100 people aged over 45 years. In their study of 400 of those people, they found that 12.4 percent had dementia comparing that to a 2.6 percent in the Australian population. They also found that more males had dementia than women and that Alzheimer’s type of dementia was more common followed by Vascular dementia.

Many risk factors can lead to dementia; however, some of them are more prevalent in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Dr Mark Wenitong, one of Australia’s many well respected Indigenous doctors, describes some of the more common risk factors.

Dr Mark Wenitong – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Dementia

Sources

For the complete dementia video series please visit http://www.healthdirect.gov.au/dementia-video-series