title: [Dementia in the very elderly. Results of the Berlin Aging Study].
abstract: The frequency of dementia in very old subjects, the risk factors and the consequences of the disease were investigated in the Berlin Aging Study in an age- and gender-stratified design (ages 70-103 years, n = 516). Psychiatrists diagnosed a dementia syndrome according to DSM-III-R, applying the GMS-A and HAS interviews. The dementia frequency steeply increases until the 90-94 year group, but there is no further exponential increase for the 95+ group--instead for men the data show a plateau of dementia prevalence. Low education level turned out to be a risk factor, which explains the gender effect in a logistic regression analysis. The apolipoprotein E4 genotype was confirmed as a risk factor--however, only for the older subjects (85+). Dementia was a major reason for institutionalization. The 2-year mortality was no higher in dementia than for age-matched non-demented controls. The results gave a detailed picture of dementia in the very old. This is a prerequisite for planning facilities for psychiatric diagnostics and therapy as well as nursing care.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatrische Klinik und Poliklinik, Freien Universität Berlin.
authors.forename: F M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Reischies
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Geiselmann
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gessner
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kanowski
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wernicke
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Helmchen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics; D001604:Berlin / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
chemical_list: D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E