ABSTRACT
The increasing and widespread interest in age-associated dementia originated because of the rapid aging of the world population. Recognition of the heterogeneity of dementia has focused epidemiologic research toward specific dementing disorders, and recent data indicate that various dementing disorders have different frequency, distribution, risk factors, and treatment. This chapter reviews epidemiologic studies of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) published in English since 1980; studies in which AD was not distinguished from other types of dementia were excluded. The characteristic, although not pathognomonic, neuropathologic lesions in AD are neurofibrillary tangles, senile plaques, and cerebrovascular amyloid deposits. Only population-based studies were included in the review; investigations based on selected groups and cohorts or using indirect measures of AD frequency were not considered. The only available data on differences by ethnic group within a population were generated by the study of a biracial population in Mississippi. Muscarinic agonists share many of the toxicity and administration problems discussed for cholinesterase inhibitors.
