Prevalence of Cognitive Impairment among Elderly Jacob Elizabath1, Pavithran Sheela2,*, Vijaykumar Priya3 1M. Sc. Nursing Student, Amrita College of Nursing 2Vice-Principal, Amrita College of Nursing 3Clinical Professor, Department of Geriatrics, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, AMRITA Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Health Sciences Campus, Kochi *Corresponding Author: Prof. Sheela Pavithran, Vice-Principal, Amrita College of Nursing, AMRITA Vishwa Vidaypeetham, Kochi-41, e-mail address: sheelapavithran@aims.amrita.edu
Online published on 23 December, 2019. Abstract Introduction Cognitive impairment is the decline of intellectual abilities that leads to inability of an individual to manage his/her social or occupational activities. Elderly people are at high risk for cognitive impairment. The study was aimed to assess the prevalence and level of cognitive impairment among elderly. Methodology The study was conducted among 200 elderly attending Geriatric outpatient department in Kerala who were selected by convenience sampling. This descriptive study used Rowland's Universal Dementia Assessment Scale and Mini Mental Status Examination Scale to collect the data which were analyzed using descriptive statistics involving frequency and percentage. Result Cognitive impairment was prevalent in 132(66%) of the elderly with predominantly mild level of cognitive impairment (CI) 61(46.2%) followed by moderate (58, 43.9%). Cognitive impairment increased with advancing age (46.6% in young old versus 88.24% in old). Widows/widowers and single individuals had higher prevalence than married people. Parkinsonism, anemia, stroke, asthma and alcoholism increased the risk for cognitive impairment. Conclusion The study finding indicated that elderly are at high risk for cognitive impairment. An in depth study of the contributing factors and its impact on the overall quality of life is needed. Health care should focus on early detection of the underlying disease to prevent the occurrence of further complications. Top Keywords Cognitive impairment, elderly, prevalence, geriatrics. Top |