Risk factors for dementia in a rural area of Northeastern Brazil.
OBJECTIVE
To identify risk factors for dementia among the elderly in a rural area of Northeastern Brazil.


METHODS
The subjects assessed were all 60 years old or older, and lived in a rural region of Bahia, a Northeastern State of Brazil. CAMDEX, a structured clinical evaluation protocol, was used for diagnosis, and applied at the home of the subjects.


RESULTS
The risk factors identified were divided in accordance with socio-demographic characteristics, the presence of co-morbid conditions, and the use of medications. The variables with strong association with dementia were age, history of stroke, arterial hypertension, and sight impairment.


CONCLUSIONS
Advanced age, arterial hypertension, and vascular brain injury were the main risk factors associated with dementia, which suggests that public health measures adopted to prevent and control modifiable risk factors can mitigate the prevalence of high rates of dementia.
Divisão de Neurologia e Epidemiologia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brazil.
Manuela Oliveira de Cerqueira
MO
Magalhães
Josecy Maria de Souza
JM
Peixoto
Mônica Hupsel
MH
Frank
Irênio
I
Gomes
Bernardo Mota
BM
Rodrigues
Carla
C
Menezes
Eduardo
E
Cardoso
Fernando
F
Carvalho
Roque
R
Aras
Ailton
A
Melo
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors