title: Changing relative prevalence of Alzheimer disease versus non-Alzheimer disease dementias: have we underestimated the looming dementia epidemic?
abstract: The relative prevalence of neurodegenerative dementias in our Veterans' Affairs dementia clinic has shifted from predominantly Alzheimer disease (AD) to predominantly non-AD diagnoses. Because our clinic was the only Veterans' Affairs clinic in Oklahoma that could initiate cholinesterase inhibitors, we had a captured patient referral source. If future epidemiologic studies establish that non-AD dementias are as, or more, prevalent than AD, then the looming dementia epidemic in the United States will be greater in magnitude than currently predicted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, Okla., USA. elliott-ross@ouhsc.edu
authors.forename: Elliott D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.forename: Santosh N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: Calin I
authors.initials: CI
authors.lastname: Prodan
authors.forename: Marilee
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Monnot
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016208:Databases, Factual; D003704:Dementia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019636:Neurodegenerative Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D009825:Oklahoma / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs