The cause of most dementia is unknown, but the final stages of
this disease usually means a loss of memory, reasoning, speech,
and other cognitive functions. The risk of dementia increases
sharply with age and, unless new strategies for prevention and
management are developed, this syndromeis expected to place
growing demands on health and long-term care providers as the
world’s population ages. Dementia prevalence estimates vary
considerably internationally, in part because diagnoses and
reporting systems are not standardized. The disease is not easy
to diagnose, especially in its early stages. The memory
problems, misunderstandings, and behavior common in the early
and intermediate stages are often attributed to normal effects
of aging, accepted as personality traits, or simply ignored.
Many cases remain undiagnosed even in the intermediate, more
serious stages. A cross-national assessment conducted by the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
estimated that dementia affected about 10