141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Online Program

287421
Alzheimer's disease mortality and lost productivity among adults aged 40-64 years, 1999-2008


Monday, November 4, 2013 : 10:54 a.m. - 11:06 a.m.

Kristin Moschetti, MPH, Medical Student, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Traverse City, MI
Ricardo Basurto-Davila, PhD, Office of Health Assessment and Epidemiology, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Patricia L. Cummings, MPH, Epidemiology, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Frank Sorvillo, PhD, Epidemiology, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Tony Kuo, MD, MSHS, Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Background: Worldwide, Alzheimer's disease (AD) affects an estimated 35.6 million people. By 2050, the prevalence of this disease is expected to triple. Currently it is estimated that annual costs associated with treatment and caregiving total to more than $604 billion (U.S. dollars). While AD most commonly affects individuals aged 65 years and older, few studies have quantified the burden of AD (mortality, morbidity, and lost productivity) among adults aged 40-64 years. To address this gap, we examined mortality and lost productivity trends for this age group in the United States, using 1999-2008 U.S. multiple-cause-of-death data.

Methods: Number of cases; crude, age-specific, and age-adjusted mortality rates; and AD-related productivity losses were estimated. The disease burden was compared to those of other chronic conditions.

Results: From 1999-2008, a total of 7,039 AD-related deaths were identified for the 40-64 age group in the United States. The age-adjusted mortality rate remained relatively static: 0.75 per 100,000 population in 1999 (95% CI: 0.69-0.80) to 0.71 per 100,000 population in 2008 (95% CI: 0.66-0.76). Differences in mortality trends were observed by age, sex, race and ethnicity, and place of death. AD-attributable productivity losses were nearly $3.7 billion.

Conclusion: Despite common perceptions that this disease is rare among younger adults (<65), the AD burden in the 40-64 age group was not trivial during 1999-2008. These findings have policy implications in social service allocation, healthcare planning, caregiving, and end-of-life care.

Learning Areas:

Chronic disease management and prevention
Epidemiology
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe Alzheimer’s disease mortality trends for decedents aged 40-64 years using the 1999-2008 U.S. multiple-cause-of-death dataset. Present lost productivity results for decedents with Alzheimer’s disease who belong to the 40-64 age group. Discuss policy implications in social service allocation, healthcare planning, caregiving, and end-of-life care based on study findings.

Keyword(s): Emerging Health Issues, Dementia

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am qualified to be an abstract author on this content because I am a medical student who has conducted research in this area, having published a recent peer-review article on Alzheimer's mortality.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3101.0: Alzheimer’s Disease / Dementia