HIV-related dementia common in Africa, study finds
Source: Reuters
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor WASHINGTON, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Dementia caused by the AIDS virus may be far more common in Africa than previously believed, making it one of the leading causes of dementia in the world, researchers reported on Monday. Alzheimer's disease and strokes are currently the most common causes of dementia. But researchers found AIDS-related dementia in 31 percent of HIV patients in Uganda -- an alarmingly high rate. "If the rate we saw in our study translates across sub-Saharan Africa, we're looking at more than 8 million people in this region with HIV dementia," said Dr. Ned Sacktor, a neurologist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore who worked on the study. "It's obvious if you just look at the numbers -- 27 million people infected in Africa. If anywhere close to 30 percent of those have dementia ... certainly it would be among the more common forms of dementia," Sacktor added in a telephone interview. "Clearly, large-scale testing would have to be conducted before we know the global reach of HIV dementia, but this study sends a clear message that it exists in high proportions in sub-Saharan Africa and is an under-recognized condition that needs to be studied and treated." Doctors know that the AIDS virus can cause dementia, probably by destroying brain cells. AIDS drug combinations greatly reduce this rate but only 20 percent of people infected with HIV in the world get the drugs. The dementia hits people at a much younger age than Alzheimer's usually does, and has even been seen in children, Sacktor said. "They have memory problems. They are very slow in responding to questions. They have motor coordination problems. They have gait difficulties. They can have mood disturbances such as depression. They can have apathy, very little interest in doing things." Writing in the journal Neurology, Sacktor and colleagues said they studied 178 people in Uganda, from September 2003 to January 2004. They said 100 were normal, healthy adults and 78 had the AIDS virus. About 25 of the HIV patients had dementia -- 31 percent of the total. None of the people without HIV had it, Sacktor said. Giving people the HIV drug combinations known as highly active antiretroviral therapy can reverse the damage, Sacktor said. Without it, the numbers of patients could grow, the researchers said. "These individuals with HIV dementia would have higher rates of unemployment and a decreased ability to perform their activities of daily living," they wrote. Alzheimer's is the leading cause of dementia globally, affecting 18 million people according to the World Health Organization, and 5 million people in the United States alone. There is no cure for Alzheimer's, which becomes far more common as people age.
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