EPIDEMIOLOGY OF VASCULAR AND ALZHEIMERS-DEMENTIA AMONG AFRICAN-AMERICANS IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - BASE-LINE FREQUENCY AND COMPARISON OF RISK-FACTORS

We compared demographic, medical, and other epidemiologic factors amon g 113 African-American Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and 79 Africa n-American vascular dementia (VaD) patients. The typical background pr ofile of our AD and VaD patients who entered into the study was that o f women who were born and raised on farms in the southeastern United S tates, currently lived in an apartment or home in Chicago with other f amily members, and were retired, widowed, and had some form of medical insurance. The following distinct patient profiles emerged: (1) Afric an-American AD patients were generally older than their VaD counterpar ts, more likely to have a family history of AD, Parkinson's disease an d dementia, a history of head injury with loss of consciousness and hi p fracture, and more severe cognitive impairment and difficulty with i nstrumental activities of daily living. (2) African-American VaD patie nts had a higher frequency of cardiovascular disease risk factors and focal neurologic findings, more difficulty with activities of daily li ving, and a higher frequency of medication use. Differences in risk-fa ctor profile may help explain differential susceptibility by dementia subtype. Since ethnic minorities will constitute a higher proportion o f the United States population in the future, targeted epidemiologic r esearch to better understand etiology and risk factors for the dementi as of middle and later life among minorities is needed.