Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU) Dr. Fazıl Küçük Medicine Faculty member and Neurology Specialist Assoc. Prof. Dr. Amber Eker Bakkaloğlu released a statement on the occasion of 21 September, World Alzheimer’s Day. The statement is as follows:
“Know Your Dementia, Know Your Alzheimer’s”
“September is regarded as Alzheimer’s month and the 21st of September is regarded as the Alzheimer’s Day all around the world. Various events and activities are organized during the month of September with the intention of awareness raising among the society. This year’s theme for awareness month has been set as “Know Your Dementia, Know Your Alzheimer’s”.
Forgetfulness is a common complaint of many people from different age groups. A significant part of the complaints of people, especially young people, who complain of forgetfulness are caused by treatable causes such as vitamin deficiencies, especially B12, thyroid disorders and depression. These causes, which can be treated in people with forgetfulness, should be reviewed as a priority. In order for a forgetfulness to be diagnosed as dementia, it must lead to cognitive losses that affect the activities of daily living that people normally do easily. Dementia is one of the biggest causes of disability and dependency in elder population worldwide. Like other diseases, there are also different types of dementia. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia. The incidence of Alzheimer's disease increases over the years with aging populations. According to the World Health Organization, there are 50 million dementia patients all over the world, and the frequency between 2030 and 2050 is predicted to reach 82 million and then 152 million.
If we analyze the situation on our island, estimated figures including only the South part of the Cyprus have been reported in so far. In Alzheimer's Europe-2012, an estimated 11,250 dementia patients were reported in Southern Cyprus. The estimated number of people with dementia in Northern Cyprus, which we calculated in the light of the percentages in the world, is 2,700. The data, which was determined by the face-to-face screening of the society for the first time across the whole island, was obtained with the study carried out last year in cooperation with our Faculty and Famagusta Municipality. In this study, screening tests in terms of dementia were applied to randomly selected people among the people over the age of 65 living in the Famagusta region to reflect the society. According to the results of the study, 40% of the people included in the study were found to have a cognitive disability according to the screening tests. More interestingly, more than half of people with cognitive impairment were unaware of the condition themselves or their families.
These findings show us that Alzheimer's disease is an important and common disease in our society, and recognizing the disease is the most important step to be taken for its diagnosis. The earliest symptom of Alzheimer's disease is memory impairment regarding recent actions. Being able to remember the the older memories should not mislead us. In addition to memory problems, symptoms such as difficulty in dressing, eating, and using tools, which are acquired skills in normal life, personality and behavioral changes, disorders in using language, understanding speech, inability to find a way, inability to calculate, introversion and having vivid dreams can be observed. Being familiar with these symptoms is very valuable for early diagnosis of the disease. We know that early diagnosis and treatment contribute positively to the course of the disease.
The most important risk factor for the Alzheimer’s disease is age. It has been reported that1 in 8 people over 65 years old and nearly 1 in every two elders are diagnosed with the disease. Having a family member with dementia can also increase the risk. Although these are uncontrollable risk factors today, another issue to keep in mind is that there are risk factors that we can control. Dementia occurs more easily and earlier in people with low education level and who have intense vascular risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity, and the course is adversely affected. Preventing these risk factors that we can control is very important for a better course of the disease.”
