title: Changing Patterns of Patient Characteristics in a Memory Clinic in Singapore.
abstract: Promoting public awareness about dementia has been part of global initiatives in recent years; however, the impact on patterns of patient visits in memory clinics has not been investigated in Asian countries. Hence, the present study sought to investigate longitudinal patterns of patient characteristics among consecutive referrals to a memory clinic in Singapore from 2009 to 2015.
  
  
  
  Consecutive first-visit patients who attended the National University Hospital memory clinic between 2009 and 2015 through referrals from primary and secondary health care services were included in the study. A retrospective review on patient demographics, clinical diagnosis, and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) was performed. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the changing patterns of patient characteristics over the 7-year period.
  
  
  
  A total of 1075 patients were included in the analysis, among whom 675 (62.8%) were diagnosed with dementia. Over the 7-year period, more dementia-free patients were seen compared to dementia patients (odds ratio [OR] = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.55-1.86). Among patients who visited the memory clinic and were subsequently diagnosed with dementia, an increasing number of mild dementia (CDR = 1) compared to moderate-to-severe dementia (CDR = 2 or 3) cases were found (OR = 1.11, 95% CI = 1.02-1.21).
  
  
  
  Changing patterns in characteristics of patients visiting the memory clinic were observed, with an increasing number of patients at a less severe stage of disease seeking medical management. These results suggest that efforts to promote awareness of dementia among the public have been effective. Future studies are recommended to confirm the causes and investigate potential consequences of the changing patterns of memory clinic patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: April Ka Sin
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Phua
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Win King
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Serrie Platero
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Suministrado
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Saima
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hilal
authors.affiliation: Departments of Epidemiology & Neurology, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mohammad Kamran
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Ikram
authors.affiliation: Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore; Raffles Neuroscience Centre, Raffles Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Narayanaswamy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Venketasubramanian
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore. Electronic address: phcxx@nus.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Memory Aging and Cognition Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Christopher Li-Hsian
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003704:Dementia / Q000503:physiopathology; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012846:Singapore
keywords: Memory clinic; changing patterns; cognitive impairment no dementia; dementia; patient characteristics; public awareness