Prevalence and determinants of probable dementia in rural India: a cross-sectional study in the APCAPS cohort.
12 affiliations
- 1Research Institute for Health Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- 2Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- 3Global Health and Chronic Conditions Research Group, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- 4Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London, UK.
- 5Data Science Research Center, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
- 6ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
- 7Public Health Foundation of India, New Delhi, India.
- 8Indian Institute of Public Health Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India.
- 9Centre for Global Chronic Conditions, Department of Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
- 10Coventry University, Coventry, UK.
- 11Department of Social Work Education and Community Wellbeing, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK.
- 12International Center for Evidence in Disability, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
Abstract
Background
Dementia poses a growing public health challenge in India. Despite this, epidemiological data on the condition remain largely restricted to adults >60 years of age, despite the convergence of urbanisation-driven cardiometabolic risks and socioeconomic disadvantage in rural India potentially accelerating dementia onset. We investigated the prevalence and determinants of probable dementia in a transitional rural Indian cohort of adults aged ≥45 years.Methods
In this cross-sectional study, we utilised data from the Andhra Pradesh Children and Parents Study cohort from 29 villages near Hyderabad, South India (2021-2023). We collected sociodemographic, occupational, and household asset data through face-to-face, questionnaire-based interviews. Cardiometabolic diseases (diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and stroke) were assessed using validated methods. Dementia screening was performed using the Brief Community Screening Instrument for Dementia. We calculated prevalence estimates for dementia and used multivariable logistic regression to identify independent associations of probable dementia with sociodemographic, socioeconomic (education, occupation, household assets), and cardiometabolic factors (diabetes, hypertension, cardiac disease, and stroke).Results
The final sample included 2,163 adults aged ≥45 years. The prevalence of probable dementia (a positive screen on the BCSI-D) was 3.4% (95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.6-4.6) in the 45-59 age group and 7.4% (95% CI = 6.0-9.4) in the ≥60 age group. In the multivariable model, the odds of probable dementia were 2.2 times higher among unemployed or retired participants than among those working in agriculture or animal rearing (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.23; 95% CI = 1.26-3.95). The odds of probable dementia among literate participants were 0.5 times those among illiterate participants (aOR = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.31-0.89). The odds of probable dementia were 3.8 times higher among participants with a history of stroke than among those without (aOR = 3.77; 95% CI = 1.67-7.94).Conclusions
Our results indicate that the burden of probable dementia in rural India extends into middle age, and that the condition itself is independently associated with a history of stroke and socioeconomic disadvantages. This suggests a need to extend cognitive and vascular risk assessment to adults aged ≥45 years in rural India. However, as all findings reflect positive screening results rather than confirmed diagnoses, longitudinal studies with diagnostic confirmation are needed before population-level screening recommendations can be made.
Related
- Prevalence and determinants of urban malaria among urban residents of Dilla Town, southern Ethiopia: a community-based cross-sectional study
- Prevalence and determinants of hypertension, diabetes, and obesity among civil servants in rural Southwestern Uganda: a cross-sectional survey
- Prevalence and determinants of self-reported all-cause dementia among middle-aged and older adults in the United States: Results from a nationally representative survey
- Prevalence and Determinants of Diabetes among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in India: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of LASI
- Prevalence, characteristics, and determinants of chest pain among physicians in the Middle East and North Africa: A multinational cross-sectional study
BibTeX
@article{basa2026prevalence,
title = {{Prevalence and determinants of probable dementia in rural India: a cross-sectional study in the APCAPS cohort.}},
author = {Jagannadha Rao Basa and Kanokporn Pinyopornpanish and Poppy Ac Mallinson and Papangkorn Inkeaw and Kanokwan Kulprachakarn and Judith Lieber and Santosh Kumar Banjara and Hemant Mahajan and Teena Dasi and Santhi Bhogadi and Srivalli Addanki and Gowri Iyer and Anoop Sv Shah and Om Kurmi and Sureshkumar Kamalakannan and Sanjay Kinra and Chaisiri Angkurawaranon},
journal = {Journal of global health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.7189/jogh.16.04339},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42895276},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Prevalence and determinants of probable dementia in rural India: a cross-sectional study in the APCAPS cohort.
AU - Jagannadha Rao Basa
AU - Kanokporn Pinyopornpanish
AU - Poppy Ac Mallinson
AU - Papangkorn Inkeaw
AU - Kanokwan Kulprachakarn
AU - Judith Lieber
AU - Santosh Kumar Banjara
AU - Hemant Mahajan
AU - Teena Dasi
AU - Santhi Bhogadi
AU - Srivalli Addanki
AU - Gowri Iyer
AU - Anoop Sv Shah
AU - Om Kurmi
AU - Sureshkumar Kamalakannan
AU - Sanjay Kinra
AU - Chaisiri Angkurawaranon
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
JO - Journal of global health
DO - 10.7189/jogh.16.04339
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42895276
AB - Background Dementia poses a growing public health challenge in India. Despite this, epidemiological data on the condition remain largely restricted to adults >60 years of age, despite the convergence of urbanisation-driven cardiometabolic risks and socioeconomic disadvantage in rural India potentially accelerating dementia onset. We investigated the prevalence and determinants of probable dementia in a transitional rural Indian cohort of adults aged ≥45 years.Methods In this cross-sectional study, we utilised data from the Andhra Pradesh Children and Parents Study cohort from 29 villages near Hyderabad, South India (2021-2023). We collected sociodemographic, occupational, and household asset data through face-to-face, questionnaire-based interviews. Cardiometabolic diseases (diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and stroke) were assessed using validated methods. Dementia screening was performed using the Brief Community Screening Instrument for Dementia. We calculated prevalence estimates for dementia and used multivariable logistic regression to identify independent associations of probable dementia with sociodemographic, socioeconomic (education, occupation, household assets), and cardiometabolic factors (diabetes, hypertension, cardiac disease, and stroke).Results The final sample included 2,163 adults aged ≥45 years. The prevalence of probable dementia (a positive screen on the BCSI-D) was 3.4% (95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.6-4.6) in the 45-59 age group and 7.4% (95% CI = 6.0-9.4) in the ≥60 age group. In the multivariable model, the odds of probable dementia were 2.2 times higher among unemployed or retired participants than among those working in agriculture or animal rearing (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.23; 95% CI = 1.26-3.95). The odds of probable dementia among literate participants were 0.5 times those among illiterate participants (aOR = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.31-0.89). The odds of probable dementia were 3.8 times higher among participants with a history of stroke than among those without (aOR = 3.77; 95% CI = 1.67-7.94).Conclusions Our results indicate that the burden of probable dementia in rural India extends into middle age, and that the condition itself is independently associated with a history of stroke and socioeconomic disadvantages. This suggests a need to extend cognitive and vascular risk assessment to adults aged ≥45 years in rural India. However, as all findings reflect positive screening results rather than confirmed diagnoses, longitudinal studies with diagnostic confirmation are needed before population-level screening recommendations can be made.
SN - 2047-2978
SN - 2047-2986
ER -