Dementia Numbers Are on Rise in the U.S.

Mar 20, 11:47 AM

Current Headlines: By Lauran Neergaard THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON -- More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease, a 10 percent increase since the last Alzheimer's Association estimate five years ago -- and a count that supports the long-forecast dementia epidemic as the population grays.

Age is the biggest risk factor, and the report to be released today shows the nation is on track for skyrocketing Alzheimer's once the baby boomers start turning 65 in 2011. Already, one in eight people 65 and older have the mind-destroying illness, and nearly one in two people over 85.

Unless scientists discover a way to delay Alzheimer's brain attack, some 7.7 million people are expected to have the disease by 2030, the report says. By 2050, that toll could reach 16 million.

The report also contains a startling finding: Between 200,000 and half a million people under age 65 have either early-onset Alzheimer's or another form of dementia. Researchers have been hard- pressed to estimate the number of young sufferers.

"I think this has been drastically underreported," said Dr. Bill Thies, the Alzheimer's Association's medical director.

He cites as an example a 55-year-old having problems at work, such as behavior changes or missing deadlines, that may be early signs of brain impairment but that go unrecognized until they progress to full-scale memory problems.

No one knows what causes Alzheimer's creeping brain degeneration. It gradually robs sufferers of their memories and ability to care for themselves, eventually killing them. There is no known cure.

Medicare's spending on dementia-related care is projected to double to more than $189 million by 2015.

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