title: A Longitudinal Analysis of General Practitioner Service Use by Patients with Mild Cognitive Disorders in Australia.
abstract: The aim of this study was to ascertain if participants diagnosed with any mild cognitive disorder (MCD) visited a general practitioner (GP) more than those without MCD and the effect of either depression or arthritis on GP use longitudinally.
  
  
  
  2,551 participants aged 60-64 years at baseline completed the Personality and Total Health Through Life (PATH) study in Canberra. Follow-up data were collected after 4 and 8 years. A cognitive screening battery was used to screen participants into a substudy of MCD.
  
  
  
  Participants with any MCD had greater GP use than cognitively healthy participants across all three waves (wave 1, M = 7.35 vs. 5.59; wave 2, M = 7.77 vs. 5.86; wave 3, M = 9.01 vs. 6.81). After adjusting for demographic and health factors, MCD was a significant predictor of GP use at all three waves (p < 0.05, CI 0.84-0.99).
  
  
  
  This study has shown that MCD is associated with a higher use of GP visits, especially if the patient has a comorbid condition.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing, The Australian National University, Acton, A.C.T., Australia.
authors.forename: Lily
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: O'Donoughue Jenkins
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Butterworth
authors.forename: Kaarin J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Anstey
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001168:Arthritis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D003071:Cognition; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D058006:General Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010552:Personality Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires