Dementia cases under-reported; patients need specialised care

“Looking at her, I felt guilty and asked myself what I did that she fell into this situation.

“When the disease became severe, she stopped listening to me. She could not recognise her grandchildren, she forgot to speak, she forgot how to eat, she started losing focus even while walking,” said Wing Commander (retd), D P Sabarwal, who took care of his wife (Kanta Sabarwal) who has been suffering from Alzheimer's for the past 10 years.

“She walked into another building thinking it is our apartment. That is when we took her to a psychiatrist,” said Sabarwal.

He said it takes a major toll on the care giver and will affect their mental health. Kanta was later taken to Nightingales Medical Trust (NMT), an NGO which has tied up with the government to care for the elderly.

Kanta is among hundreds of people who suffer this condition as a result of the Alzheimer's. “There are around 30,000 people in the city with dementia. But this is under-reported,” said Dr Radha Murthy, managing trustee and co-founder of NMT.

According to the Dementia India report 2010, the number of people with Alzheimer's was 3.7 million in 2010 and the projected figures for 2030 is 4.1 million.

“Age alone is not the cause. It can be genetic factors, hypertension, nutritional deficiency among others,” said Dr P T Shivakumar, professor of geriatric psychiatry, Nimhans. The geriatric department of Nimhans alone receives one-third of the new patients (at least 20) who approach them for help.

He added that formal care services (day care and residential care) for Alzheimer's patients are limited. Those available are not accessible or affordable. Affordable specialised care for dementia for the poor is not available in the government sector.

Dr S Premkumar Raja, secretary of NMT said the government has not recognised dementia as a healthcare priority.

He said care takers should be trained on to how to handle those with dementia. People should be aware of how to detect it.

“People only seek help when there is severe memory loss or mental problems,” said Dr Shivakumar.

If there is continuous and persistent loss of memory, if the person starts forgetting routine activities regularly, then medical intervention should be sought. Early intervention will help maintain the quality of help.

Wing Commander Sabarwal, has written a book about his experiences titled ‘Handling Alzheimer's with Courage’, which will also explain how one should take care of oneself while taking care of those affected by Alzheimer's.