Excess Alzheimer, Related Dementia-Linked Mortality Increased During COVID-19
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, July 19, 2023 -- In COVID-19 pandemic year 1, there was a large increase in mortality with Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) as an underlying or contributing cause of death, which was largely mitigated in year 2, according to a study published online July 17 in JAMA Neurology.
Ruijia Chen, Sc.D., from the University of California in San Francisco, and colleagues compared pandemic-era excess deaths associated with ADRD between year 1 and year 2 of the COVID-19 pandemic in a time series analysis for U.S. decedents aged 65 years and older with ADRD as an underlying or contributing cause of death. A total of 2,334,101 death certificates were analyzed.
The researchers identified 94,688 pandemic-era excess deaths with ADRD in year 1 and 21,586 in year 2. For every age, sex, and racial and ethnic group evaluated, declines in ADRD-related deaths in year 2 were substantial. Among nursing home/long-term care residents, pandemic-era ADRD-related excess deaths decreased from 34,259 in year 1 to 22,050 in year 2, but excess deaths at home remained high (34,487 and 28,804, respectively).
"Our findings underscore the urgent need to mitigate the pandemic's impacts on community-dwelling older adults with ADRD," the authors write.
One author disclosed ties to Johnson & Johnson and Swiss Re.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted July 2023
Further Support and Information on COVID-19
Read this next
Active Surveillance Effective Strategy for Favorable-Risk Prostate Cancer
FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- Active surveillance is an effective management strategy for men with favorable-risk prostate cancer, with an estimated rate of metastasis of 1.4 percent at...
Preeclampsia Linked to Increased Risk for Young-Onset Dementia
FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- Individuals with preeclampsia have an increased risk for young-onset dementia, according to a research letter published online May 30 in JAMA Network...
BMI Cutoff of 30 for Obesity May Be Too High for Middle-Aged, Older Adults
FRIDAY, May 31, 2024 -- The optimal body mass index (BMI) cutoff point appears to be 27 kg/m2 for detecting obesity in middle-aged and older adults, according to a study presented...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.