P49: Sociodemographic and Clinical Insights into Behavioral Variant Frontotemporal Dementia and Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease in Colombia: A Comprehensive Study of Patients and Caregivers

Abstract

Objectives: As life expectancy continues to rise globally, the prevalence of dementia is also increasing. However, there is a lack of studies in Latin American countries that describe the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of dementia patients and their caregivers, potentially overlooking important differences that could impact diagnosis in a diverse population. This study aims to elucidate the sociodemographic characteristics of patients with Behavioral Variant Frontotemporal Dementia (bvFTD) and Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), as well as their primary caregivers in Colombia, while also examining the clinical presentation ofdementia.

Methods: A total of 83 Colombian participants were included in the study, consisting of 40 healthy controls and 43 individuals previously diagnosed with bvFTD (n = 20) and early-onset AD (n = 23). Diagnoses were established based on the current diagnostic criteria for both conditions. Participants underwent sociodemographic assessments, and a clinical evaluation was conducted. Additionally, caregivers were characterized sociodemographically.

Results: Most participants were female (67%) with a mean age of 63 years. Educational levels were comparable between the dementia group (12.4 years) and the control group (12.9 years). A higher proportion of dementia cases were observed in lower socioeconomic status categories (1 to 3). Past medical history of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and traumatic brain injury was more prevalent in the bvFTD group, whereas coronary disease was more common in the AD group. Initial psychiatric misdiagnosis occurred more frequently in bvFTD (50%) compared to AD (26%), with depression being the most common misdiagnosis in both groups (37.5%), followed by bipolar disorder (25%) and anxiety (25%). Most caregivers were female (70%) with a mean age of 50 years. The most common caregiver-patient relationships were daughter (25.6%) and husband (25.6%), followed by wife (23.3%). The mean educational level of bvFTD caregivers (13.95) was higher than that of AD caregivers (12.87).

Conclusions: These findings provide valuable insights into the sociodemographic characteristics of dementia patients and their caregivers in Latin America, a population that is often underrepresented in research. Further exploration of diagnostic variations may be warranted, given the high prevalence of misdiagnosis in this region.