Dementia death rate in the United States has more than doubled, according to the CDC

A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics reveals that the death rate from dementia has more than doubled in the past two decades.

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Based on nationwide death certificate data – that scientists from Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention note that they "under-represent the actual mortality rate due to the disease from disease." Alzheimer's and other dementias "- the disease has been identified as the leading cause of 261,914 deaths in 2017, of 84,000 deaths in 2000.

"Overall, age-adjusted dementia death rates increased from 30.5 deaths per 100,000 population in 2000 to 66.7 in 2017," researchers wrote in the new issue. from National Vital Statistics Reports.

According to the CDC, "Dementia is a general term that refers to conditions that result in memory loss serious enough to affect a person's ability to perform daily activities."

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For the NCHS report, researchers examined four types of dementia recognized by the International Clbadification of Diseases, vascular dementia, unspecified dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and others attributed to degenerative diseases of the nervous system.

Although there are many types of dementia, Alzheimer's disease is the most common.

In fact, of the estimated 262,000 deaths attributed to dementia in 2017, 46% were due to Alzheimer's disease, the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. The death rate from the disease has increased by 55% in recent decades and in Georgia, the number of deaths due to Alzheimer's disease has increased by 201% since 2000, according to Georgia Health News.

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"Part of what is probably happening is that people are living older, and these are the ones with the highest risk of dementia," said lead researcher Ellen Kramarow in a statement to Healthday. "If you have not died of heart disease, cancer or something else and you are reaching a very advanced age, the risk of developing dementia is more high."

But some of these increases can also be attributed to changes in record keeping and coding guidelines. But again, even death certificates downplay the numbers, according to the researchers.

Last year, the CDC revealed that the burden of Alzheimer's disease and badociated dementia in the country would be doubled by 2060.

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The agency's research, the first to consider race and ethnicity in its forecasts, indicates that Americans of Hispanic origin will face the largest projected increase, mainly because of population growth. Non-Hispanic Whites should still have the highest number of Alzheimer's cases.

"Early diagnosis is essential to help people and their families cope with memory loss, navigate the health care system and plan their care in the future," said Robert R. Redfield, Director CDC.

The cause of Alzheimer's disease is not yet well understood and the new report highlights the need for further research, they added.

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Chad Hales, an badistant professor at the Emory University School of Medicine, who was not involved in the report, told CNN that "the diagnosis of dementia begins with a good clinical history, exams brain imaging and laboratory studies to ensure that no other disease causes the symptoms. " "The current gold standard," he told the network, "is a post-mortem diagnosis with neuropathological confirmation," which means the disease is better diagnosed after death.

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