Psychiatria pre prax 2/2001

Improvement of the diagnosing of dementia in primary care – the role of interdepartmental collaboration

Dementia is a worrying illness of the elderly age affecting 5–8 % of the population over 65 years of age. Today, in the Czech Republic, there are already over 100 000 patients suffering from this illness, and each year brings 25 000 new cases. The lengthening of the average lifetime also increases the incidence of the illness. Unfortunately, dementia is not only one of the diseases with the most rapidly increasing incidence, it is also one of the worst diagnosed. In 60–70 % of the cases the illness is not recognised, and in the majority of the diagnosed cases the disease is detected late, after 3–5 years. Only 5 % of the overall expenses are spent on diagnosis and treatment, while the remaining 95 % goes to patient care and long-term institutionalised treatment. In this paper we consider the causes of the late and incorrect diagnosis of dementia in clinical work. The competences of the practitioners and of the individual specialists are discussed, together with the contribution of interdepartmental collaboration in improving the diagnosis and treatment of dementia.

Keywords: dementia, primary care, geriatric psychiatry.