Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health

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Volume 2, Issue 4, December 2012, Pages 207 - 214

Rates of diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders within a prevalent population of community-dwelling elderly people in sub-Saharan Africa

Authors
Felicity Dewhursta, b, *, drfelicitywerrett@doctors.org.uk, Matthew J. Dewhursta, b, William K. Graya, Paul Chaotec, William Howlettd, Golda Oregad, Richard W. Walkera, b
aNorthumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, North Tyneside General Hospital, North Shields, UK
bInstitute of Health and Society, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
cDistrict Medical Office, P.O. Box 27, Hai District Hospital, Boman’gombe, Tanzania
dKilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre, Moshi, Tanzania
*Corresponding author. Address: Department of Medicine, North Tyneside General Hospital, Rake Lane, North Shields, Tyne and Wear NE29 8NH, UK. Tel./fax: +44 191 293 2709.
Corresponding Author
Received 4 September 2012, Revised 18 October 2012, Accepted 14 November 2012, Available Online 8 January 2013.
DOI
10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.002How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Treatment; Diagnosis; Neurological disorders; Elderly; Africa
Abstract

Background: The prevalence of neurological disorders in those aged 70 years and over in the Hai district of Tanzania has been previously reported. The following research reports rates of patient’s: treatment seeking, diagnosis and treatment within this prevalent population.

Methods: All people identified as having at least one neurological disorder in the prevalence study were questioned regarding whether they had sought treatment for their disorder, whether they had had a previous correct diagnosis and whether they were being currently treated.

Results: From a background population of 2232 people, 349 people had neurological disorders, of whom 225 (64.5%) had sought treatment for their symptoms. Of the 384 disorders identified in these 349 people, only 14.6% had been diagnosed and only 9.9% were receiving appropriate treatment. Males were significantly more likely to have been diagnosed and were more likely to have been treated appropriately.

Conclusions: Levels of diagnosis and treatment were low, with some gender inequality. Reasons for this may include a lack of recognition of the condition within the local population and lack of access to appropriate services. In the absence of effective primary and secondary preventative measures, and effective treatment, the burden of neurological disorders is likely to increase with further demographic ageing.

Copyright
© 2012 Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Open Access
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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<Previous Article In Issue
Next Article In Issue>
Journal
Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue
2 - 4
Pages
207 - 214
Publication Date
2013/01/08
ISSN (Online)
2210-6014
ISSN (Print)
2210-6006
DOI
10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.002How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2012 Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Open Access
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - JOUR
AU  - Felicity Dewhurst
AU  - Matthew J. Dewhurst
AU  - William K. Gray
AU  - Paul Chaote
AU  - William Howlett
AU  - Golda Orega
AU  - Richard W. Walker
PY  - 2013
DA  - 2013/01/08
TI  - Rates of diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders within a prevalent population of community-dwelling elderly people in sub-Saharan Africa
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 207
EP  - 214
VL  - 2
IS  - 4
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.002
DO  - 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.002
ID  - Dewhurst2013
ER  -