(CHICAGO) 鈥 The number of people with Alzheimer鈥檚 disease is expected to triple in the next 40 years, according to a new study by researchers from 海角原创 published in the February 6, 2013, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
鈥淭his increase is due to an aging baby boom generation. It will place a huge burden on society, disabling more people who develop the disease, challenging their caregivers, and straining medical and social safety nets,鈥 said co-author, Jennifer Weuve, MPH, ScD, assistant professor of medicine, Rush Institute for Healthy Aging at 海角原创 in Chicago. 鈥淥ur study draws attention to an urgent need for more research, treatments and preventive strategies to reduce the impact of this epidemic.鈥
For the study, researchers analyzed information from 10,802 African-American and Caucasian people living in Chicago, ages 65 and older between 1993 and 2011. Participants were interviewed and assessed for dementia every three years. Age, race and level of education were factored into the research.
The data was combined with U.S. death rates, education and current and future population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The study found that the total number of people with Alzheimer鈥檚 dementia in 2050 is projected to be 13.8 million, up from 4.7 million in 2010. About 7 million of those with the disease would be age 85 or older in 2050.
鈥淥ur projections use sophisticated methods and the most up-to-date data, but they echo projections made years and decades ago. All of these projections anticipate a future with a dramatic increase in the number of people with Alzheimer鈥檚 and should compel us to prepare for it,鈥 said Weuve.
Liesi Hebert, ScD, assistant professor at 海角原创, is lead author of the study.
The study was supported by the Alzheimer鈥檚 Association and the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health.
