Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, North Tyneside General Hospital, North Shields, UK.
J Epidemiol Glob Health. 2012 Dec;2(4):207-14. doi: 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.002. Epub 2013 Jan 8.
The prevalence of neurological disorders in those aged 70years and over in the Hai district of Tanzania has been previously reported. The following research reports rates of patient's: treatment seeking, diagnosis and treatment within this prevalent population.
All people identified as having at least one neurological disorder in the prevalence study were questioned regarding whether they had sought treatment for their disorder, whether they had had a previous correct diagnosis and whether they were being currently treated.
From a background population of 2232 people, 349 people had neurological disorders, of whom 225 (64.5%) had sought treatment for their symptoms. Of the 384 disorders identified in these 349 people, only 14.6% had been diagnosed and only 9.9% were receiving appropriate treatment. Males were significantly more likely to have been diagnosed and were more likely to have been treated appropriately.
Levels of diagnosis and treatment were low, with some gender inequality. Reasons for this may include a lack of recognition of the condition within the local population and lack of access to appropriate services. In the absence of effective primary and secondary preventative measures, and effective treatment, the burden of neurological disorders is likely to increase with further demographic ageing.
坦桑尼亚 Hai 区 70 岁及以上人群的神经障碍患病率此前已有报道。以下研究报告了该流行人群中患者的就诊率、诊断率和治疗率。
在患病率研究中，所有被确定患有至少一种神经障碍的人都被询问是否因该障碍寻求过治疗，是否曾有过正确的诊断，以及目前是否正在接受治疗。
在 2232 人的背景人群中，有 349 人患有神经障碍，其中 225 人（64.5%）因症状寻求过治疗。在这 349 人中确定的 384 种障碍中，只有 14.6%得到了诊断，只有 9.9%接受了适当的治疗。男性被诊断和接受适当治疗的可能性明显更高。
诊断和治疗水平较低，存在一定程度的性别不平等。造成这种情况的原因可能包括当地人群对这种疾病的认识不足以及缺乏获得适当服务的机会。在缺乏有效初级和二级预防措施以及有效治疗的情况下，随着人口进一步老龄化，神经障碍的负担可能会增加。
