A recent study published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Naaheed Mukadam and colleagues from University College London, UK, reveals that certain modifiable risk factors, including hypertension, obesity, diabetes, low HDL cholesterol, and sleep disorders, pose a greater dementia risk for individuals in certain minority ethnic groups compared to those of White ethnicity.
As the global population of individuals with dementia increases, the focus on modifiable risk factors has intensified, suggesting that addressing these could prevent approximately 40% of dementia cases. Despite this, previous research predominantly focused on European populations. The current study diversifies this research by examining the link between dementia risk and these factors across different ethnic groups, utilizing anonymized data from English primary care records from 1997 to 2018, covering 865,674 adults from various ethnic backgrounds.
The findings indicate that 12.6% of the studied population developed dementia, with varying percentages across ethnicities: 16.0% among White individuals, 8.6% in South Asian, 12.1% in Black, and 9.7% in individuals from other ethnic groups. The analysis showed that nearly all the studied risk factors were linked to an increased risk of dementia, with these factors often posing a more significant threat in Black and South Asian populations, especially regarding cardiovascular risks. When factors such as comorbidity, age, sex, and deprivation were considered, hypertension was found to significantly increase the risk of dementia in Black individuals compared to White individuals, with similar findings for hypertension, obesity, diabetes, low HDL, and sleep disorders in South Asian populations. The impact of hypertension on dementia risk was 1.57 times greater in South Asian individuals and 1.18 times greater in Black individuals compared to White individuals.
These outcomes could help explain why minority ethnic groups may exhibit greater susceptibility to dementia, experience an earlier onset, and have shorter survival times following diagnosis. The study emphasizes the need for dementia prevention efforts to specifically address the unique risk profiles of individuals from minority ethnic groups to ensure equitable prevention strategies.
The researchers underscore the importance of tailored dementia prevention measures, recognizing that some risk factors not only occur more frequently in minority ethnic groups but also have a more significant impact compared to the White population. That all calls for a customized approach to dementia prevention that considers ethnicity and specific risk factor profiles to achieve fairness in dementia prevention efforts.
More information: Mukadam N, Marston L, Lewis G, Mathur R, Lowther E, Rait G, et al. (2023) South Asian, Black and White ethnicity and the effect of potentially modifiable risk factors for dementia: A study in English electronic health records. PLoS ONE 18(10): e0289893. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289893
Journal information: PLoS ONE
