Objective: To determine the prevalence of dementia and its associated factors among Thai elderly.
Design: A one-stage cross-sectional national survey.
Setting: National communities in Thailand.
Subjects: 4,048 elderly subjects aged 60 and above.
Results: There were 668 (16.5%) elderly with a CMT score below 15. Among these elderly, 132 were dependent as to certain aspects of self-care. According to the definition of dementia used in this one-stage survey design (i.e. subjects with a low CMT score and self-care dependence), 3.3 per cent of Thai elderly (95% confidence interval = 2.7-3.8) were classified as having dementia. After adjusting to geographic and municipal area, the prevalence rate was 3.4 per cent (95% confidence interval = 2.8-4). Age-specific prevalence rate increased dramatically from 1.0 per cent in the 60-64 age-group to 31.3 per cent in the 90+ age-group. The prevalence rate of dementia among Thai elderly found in this study did not differ from the prevalence rates among the elderly in other Asian and developed countries. Using a logistic regression analysis, 3 independent factors associated with dementia were age, literacy (writing) and geographic area.
Conclusion: With a one-stage survey design for determining the prevalence of dementia, the prevalence rate and age-specific prevalence rate among the Thai elderly did not differ from those found in other Asian and developed countries.