[Mortality due to dementias in Catalonia, Spain: an emergent health problem].
BACKGROUND
The aims of this study were to describe the trends of mortality from dementias according to gender and age in Catalonia (Spain) and to estimate their evolution from 1979 to 2003.


METHODS
The dementia death data (ICD-9: 290-290.9 298.9, 294.9, 331.0, and 331.2) between 1979 and 1998 come from the Catalonian Mortality Register of the Department of Health as well as the official population census, lineal estimations and projections made by the Institute of Statistics of Catalonia. For the calculation of trend and mortality projections up to 2003, a Poisson regression model was adjusted for each gender, using the variables age, period and birth cohort.


RESULTS
Dementia mortality rate moved from 2.14 per 100,000 inhabitants during 1979-1983 to 41.95 during 1994-1998. With regard to the period 1989-1998, the average percentage of the annual variation of mortality is estimated to be 7.5% for males and 9.6% for females. The increase is in part due to population aging and also to a cohort effect of people born before 1925. The expected annual mean number of dementia deaths during 1999-2003 is estimated at 4,594.


CONCLUSIONS
Mortality from dementias in Catalonia has experienced a substantial increase over the last 20 years. Given the health and social impact of this group of diseases and the future perspectives, dementias should be considered as an emergent problem in public health.
Puig
Xavier
X
Servei d'Informació i Estudis. Departament de Sanitat i Seguretat Social. Generalitat de Cataluya. Barcelona. Spain.
Gispert
Rosa
R
Puigdefàbregas
Anna
A
Pérez
Glòria
G
Mompart
Anna
A
Domènec
Jaume
J
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003704:Dementia / Q000401:mortality*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology