With India’s elderly population expected to touch 20 crore in 2031, there is a growing demand for a national action plan to tackle rising cases of Alzheimer’s , the most common form of dementia which can impair memory and significantly lower quality of life.
Estimates based on a recent multi-centric study reveal a dementia prevalence rate of 7.4% among those aged 60 years and above, translating to nearly 9 lakh Indians currently living with dementia. From an estimated 88 lakh in 2016, the prevalence of dementia is projected to increase to 1.7 crore by 2036. The study titled ‘Prevalence of dementia in India: National and State estimates from a nationwide study’ was published in July this year in Alzheimer’s and Dementia, the journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.
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