Alzheimer's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease-Related Dementias in African Americans: Focus on Caregivers.
Jonathan J KopelUjala SeharMoumita ChoudhuryP Hemachandra ReddyPublished in: Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) (2023)
Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Alzheimer's Disease-Related Dementias (ADRD) are chronic illnesses that are highly prevalent in African Americans (AA). AD and ADRD are caused by multiple factors, such as genetic mutations, modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors, and lifestyle. Histopathological, morphological, and cellular studies revealed how multiple cellular changes are implicated in AD and ADRD, including synaptic damage, inflammatory responses, hormonal imbalance, mitochondrial abnormalities, and neuronal loss, in addition to the accumulation of amyloid beta and phosphorylated tau in the brain. The contributions of race, ethnicity, location and socioeconomic status all have a significant impact on the care and support services available to dementia patients. Furthermore, disparities in health care are entangled with social, economic, and environmental variables that perpetuate disadvantages among different groups, particularly African Americans. As such, it remains important to understand how various racial and ethnic groups perceive, access, and experience health care. Considering that the mounting data shows AA may be more susceptible to AD than white people, the demographic transition creates significant hurdles in providing adequate care from family caregivers. Furthermore, there is growing recognition that AD and ADRD pose a significant stress on AA caregivers compared to white people. In this review, we examine the current literature on racial disparities in AD and ADRD, particularly concerning AA caregivers.
Keyphrases
- healthcare
- palliative care
- risk factors
- affordable care act
- cognitive decline
- mental health
- end stage renal disease
- oxidative stress
- ejection fraction
- physical activity
- metabolic syndrome
- primary care
- newly diagnosed
- cardiovascular disease
- adipose tissue
- type diabetes
- peritoneal dialysis
- health insurance
- weight loss
- dna methylation
- big data
- multiple sclerosis
- health information
- african american
- copy number
- pain management
- heat stress
- climate change