Dementia epidemic by 2050 - report

The number of New Zealanders with dementia is expected to more than triple by mid-century.

There are 38,000 people in New Zealand with dementia at present, but this is predicted to rise to 118,000 by 2050, according to a report released today to coincide with World Alzheimer's Day.

The report, Dementia in the Asia Pacific Region, was commissioned by the 15 Asia-Pacific member organisations of Alzheimer's Disease International.

For the region, it predicts an even greater rate of increase than in New Zealand - from 13.7 million people with dementia now, to 64.6 million in 2050.

"... the dementia epidemic is certain because the numbers of people with dementia increase with an ageing population," the report says.

"And those aged over 60 in the Asia Pacific Region will increase from under 10 per cent today to 25 per cent of the total population by 2050 and those over 80 years from 1 per cent to 5 per cent of the population."

The report urges Governments to make dementia a health priority and to recognise that cost-effective interventions exist. It also challenges "an assumption that dementia is a natural part of ageing and not a result of disease".

Dementia could have a devastating effect on public health systems, the report says, because of the "greying" of the population and since it is one of the most disabling of all chronic diseases.

Its social and economic impact will be made worse, the authors say, by trends like urbanisation and more elderly people living alone.

There is no cure for dementia.

Alzheimers NZ has been pushing Pharmac to pay for drugs the lobby group says have proven to delay Alzheimer's disease. They can cost patients more than $200 a month.

A spokeswoman for the group, Florence Leota said that despite there being no cure, people with dementia and their families could be helped by greater awareness, drug treatments and community support.


Dementia facts

* Causes irreversible brain damage.

* Incurable, progressive and disabling condition.

* Caused by diseases which can impair memory, thinking, language, judgment, emotional control and social behaviour.

* Two of the most common are Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia.

* Majority of sufferers are elderly.

* Risk factors include being the first-degree relative of someone with dementia, having cardiovascular conditions like high blood pressure, and having had head trauma with loss of consciousness.