Dementia Incidence Among Veterans Varies Across US Regions
The incidence of dementia among older veterans varies significantly across US regions, with the Southeast, Northwest, and Rocky Mountains boasting the highest rates. Researchers published their findings online in JAMA Neurology.
“These results underscore the influence of regionally patterned risk factors or diagnostic practices, highlighting the importance of tailored health care strategies, public health initiatives, and policy reforms,” wrote first author Christina S. Dintica, PhD, of the University of California, San Francisco, and study coauthors.
The study included a random sample of nearly 1.3 million adults, age 65 year and older, without dementia in the Veterans Health Administration system. Researchers analyzed International Classification of Diseases dementia diagnosis codes for participants over an average 12.6 years of follow-up across 10 geographical regions in the United States. Study regions were based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion divisions.
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Among participants, dementia incidence rates were lowest in the Mid-Atlantic, at 11.2 per 1000 person-years. The Southeast had the highest rates, at 14.0 per 1000 person-years, according to the study.
Compared with the Mid-Atlantic, the demographically adjusted dementia incidence risk was 25% higher in the Southeast, 23% higher in the Northwest, 23% higher in the Rocky Mountains, 18% higher in the South, and 12% higher in both the Midwest and South Atlantic regions, the analysis showed. The risk of dementia in the remaining 3 regions was less than 10% higher than in the Mid-Atlantic.
“Additional adjustments for rurality and cardiovascular comorbidities and accounting for the competing risk of death produced similar results,” researchers reported.
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