The huge burden on the NHS could be eased by early diagnosis of dementia among A&E patients, a major study reveals.
The Alzheimer’s Society research shows more than 500,000 visits were made to hospital emergency departments last year by patients with undiagnosed dementia.
Those with undiagnosed dementia are also three times more likely to go to A&E than other over-65s.
Alzheimer’s Society chief executive officer Kate Lee said: ‘Early, accurate diagnosis is crucial to manage symptoms and avoid ending up in crisis.
‘If we don’t address diagnosis, we have no hope of addressing the other major dementia challenges we face and reducing the cost to the NHS and wider economy.’
File. Those with undiagnosed dementia are also three times more likely to go to A&E than other over-65s
In one of the largest UK studies of healthcare use by dementia victims, researchers looked at GP and hospital records of more than 26,000 patients over seven years.
They found people with undiagnosed dementia typically attend A&E one-and-a-half times a year, compared with 0.9 trips by diagnosed sufferers and once every two years for other over-65s.
The visits were most often for health issues indirectly related to the illness, such as falls, which Alzheimer’s Society said could be reduced with diagnosis and the right treatment and support.
Almost one in six patients in hospital at any given time have dementia, with the most severe cases staying the longest following unplanned admissions.
Almost a million people are living with dementia in Britain and it is the country’s biggest killer, accounting for one in 10 deaths while costing the economy £42billion annually.
Yet patients often struggle to receive official diagnoses, with some waiting up to two years and a third never having dementia clinically confirmed.
Also, hospital admission is known to cause distress and delirium for people with dementia, delaying their return home.
On average, the most severe cases will stay in hospital four times longer than someone with a similar illness or injury without dementia, according to the analysis by Carnall Farrar consultancy.
The new report comes weeks after the medicines regulator approved the first disease-modifying treatment, lecanemab, only for it to be refused for NHS patients on cost grounds. Early diagnosis is key to effectiveness of lecanemab and similar drugs in the pipeline.
Ms Lee said: ‘It’s unacceptable that people with undiagnosed dementia are visiting A&E three times more than those without the condition.
‘It’s causing a financial burden for our already struggling healthcare system, which should be a point of focus as we approach the Budget next month.’
Bruce is no longer the man I fell in love with, says Demi in moving interview
Hollywood star Demi Moore has spoken movingly of her ex-husband Bruce Willis’s dementia battle, saying she accepts he is not the man she fell in love with.
Moore, 61, who was married to the Die Hard actor from 1987 to 2000 and has three daughters with him, told The Drew Barrymore Show: ‘What I say to my kids is you meet them where they’re at.
‘You don’t hold on to who they were or what you want them to be, but who they are in this moment. And from that, there is such beauty and joy and loving and sweetness.’
Actor Bruce Willis and actress Demi Moore attend the 47th Annual Golden Globe Awards on January 20, 1990
Actor Bruce Willis, who was diagnosed with dementia, is seen enjoying a drive around Studio City with his bodyguards earlier this month
The Ghost actress says she is still ‘extremely close’ to Willis, 69, who is being cared for by his second wife Emma. Willis announced he had retired from acting two years ago after being diagnosed with brain disorder aphasia.
Last year his family said that his condition had progressed to frontotemporal dementia, which causes people to lose control of their emotions, memory and empathy.