Five-country survey of public experiences, attitudes and beliefs concerning Alzheimer's disease and the value of a diagnosis

Researchers have expressed concern that people with early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease might not seek medical evaluation because of the perceived lack of effective treatment and potential financial or employment problems or social stigma that might result from a diagnosis. Data are derived from a five-country survey, conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health and Alzheimer Europe, of public experiences, attitudes, and beliefs concerning Alzheimer's disease. A total of 2,678 adults aged 18 and over were interviewed by telephone (land line and cell phone) in France, Germany, Poland, Spain, and the United States in February 2011. The study was supported by a grant to Alzheimer Europe from Bayer. More than eight in ten adults (85% to 95%) in each of the five countries said that if they were exhibiting confusion or memory loss, they would go to a doctor to determine if the cause of the symptoms was Alzheimer's disease. A large proportion of adults were worried that they or a family member will get Alzheimer's disease with surprising differences between countries (43% to 95%). More than half of adults (54% to 77%) said they had known someone who has Alzheimer's disease. Between 13% and 27% reported that they had been one of the people most involved in decision-making, financial support, or day-to-day care for someone with Alzheimer's disease. More than half of adults (52% to 71%) believed there was now or will be in the next five years an effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease. Between 38% and 59% believed there was a reliable test currently available to determine if a person is in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. If educational campaigns were undertaken to persuade the public to seek medical evaluation when they exhibited early symptoms of an illness that could be Alzheimer's disease, a large proportion would likely do so. However, such educational campaigns would need to address potentially unrealistic expectations about the availability of a definitive early test and effective treatment for the disease whilst providing positive reasons for seeking a diagnosis in the absence of disease modifying treatments.