Cognitive screening of elderly population: results from four primary healthcare centres in İstanbul, Türkiye

Abstract

Objective: Our study aimed to perform cognitive screening in primary healthcare centers and examine the prevalence and associated factors of possible cognitive impairment for İstanbul, Türkiye. Methods: A total of 200 people (male =105, female =95) aged 65 years and older from four primary healthcare centres in Istanbul were randomly selected and enrolled in the study. The study population was screened using a socio-demographic survey, a validated Turkish version of the Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination (ACE-R) and Geriatric Depression scale. Multilinear regression analysis was used to identify associated factors that contribute lower scores of ACE-R test. Differences were considered statistically significant at p<0.05. Results: Possible cognitive impairment prevalence was found 12.5% (n=25) in the study population, with females having the higher proportion (n=20, 21.1% versus n=5, 4.8%, p<0.001). Based on multilinear regression model, high ACE-R test scores correlated positively with more education in years (β=.462, p<0.001), negatively with living alone (β=-.286, p=0.005), and low-income status (β=-.217, p=0.008) for male population. On the other hand, having more education in years (β=.645, p<0.001) was the only positively correlated factor for high ACE-R test scores in the model for the female population. Conclusion: The study represents the most updated epidemiological information about cognitive screening at primary heathcare level in İstanbul, Türkiye. More research is needed about cognitive decline at primary healthcare level to raise awareness among the community.

Keywords

• Cognitive screening
• Prevalence
• Risk factors
• Primary healthcare

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