The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) latest report on Alzheimer's disease shows a staggering increase in death rates among Alzheimer's disease patients in the United States. The CDC stresses the importance of early diagnosis and caregiving education.
Death Rate Increase
The CDC's latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report presented information on the increasing number of deaths related to Alzheimer's disease in the United States. By gathering their information from the National Vital Statistics System, the CDC found a 54.5 percent increase in Alzheimer's disease-related deaths in the country from 1999 up to 2014.
In 1999, the death rate went at 16.5 per 100,000 people, whereas the 2014 death rate was at 25.4 per 100,000 people after accounting for age. Further, 41 states saw a significant increase in Alzheimer's deaths with the exception of Maine, which saw a significant decrease in age-adjusted Alzheimer's deaths instead.
According to the report, which studied Alzheimer's disease-related deaths at both state and county level, a possible reason for the increase could be the growing number of older adult population in the United States, increased reports of Alzheimer's disease-related deaths by medical practitioners, increase in early-stage diagnosis of Alzheimer's, and fewer deaths of the elderly from other diseases such as stroke and heart disease.
In the case of the latter, because lesser and lesser people die from other diseases, they are able to live up to an older age when they are more susceptible to Alzheimer's disease.
More Deaths At Home
In addition to the increased death rates, the CDC also found that the number of deaths in medical facilities decreased from 14.7 percent in 1999 to 6.6 percent in 2014, while the number of deaths at home increased from 13.9 percent in 1999 to 24.9 percent in 2014.
The CDC points out the significance of this increase in home deaths to the possible stressors and increased burden brought upon by Alzheimer's to family members and other unpaid caregivers.
Education For Caregivers
The findings in the current report show that apart from the obvious effects of Alzheimer's on the patient, there are also financial and societal burdens that come along with the disease.
As the numbers suggest, more people are likely opting to keep their family members with Alzheimer's at home instead of in a facility, to be cared for by family members and unpaid caregivers instead of professionals.
In 2015, caregivers of persons with dementia, including Alzheimer's, provided 18.2 billion caregiving hours to loved ones, which possibly caused lessened work productivity and large financial costs. In 2017 alone, the expected cost of caring for persons with Alzheimer's and other dementias in the United States is expected to amount to $259 billion, two-thirds of which is to be paid for by public sources.
Because of this, the CDC stresses the importance of educating family members and caregivers on the implications of Alzheimer's, how to take care of a loved one with Alzheimer's, and how to take care of themselves as well in the process.
There is no cure for Alzheimer's yet, but this way, the burden will be lessened for the carers, and the patient will receive an increased quality of care.
