1. Dementia with Lewy bodies in first-generation immigrants in a European memory clinic.
- Author
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Segers K, Benoit F, Meyts JM, Glibert G, Levy S, and Surquin M
- Subjects
- Africa, Northern ethnology, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Belgium ethnology, Europe ethnology, Female, Humans, Latin America ethnology, Lewy Body Disease diagnosis, Male, Memory Disorders diagnosis, Middle Aged, Retrospective Studies, Emigrants and Immigrants psychology, Lewy Body Disease ethnology, Lewy Body Disease psychology, Memory Disorders ethnology, Memory Disorders psychology, Outpatient Clinics, Hospital
- Abstract
We wanted to explore possible differences in disease presentation, frequency, and age of onset of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) between first-generation immigrants (FGI) and patients born in Belgium (PBIB). We conducted a retrospective study on all patients of our Memory Clinic between June 1, 2010 and January 31, 2020. A synucleinopathy was diagnosed in 150 of 2702 patients (5.5%): 91 received a diagnosis of DLB (3.4%). FGI were two times more likely to receive a diagnosis of DLB, due to a higher prevalence in North-Africans and Latin-Americans. Visual hallucinations were less frequent in North-Africans than in other immigrants. FGI were younger than PBIB and reported more often parasomnia. Our data suggest a higher risk for DLB in certain immigrant groups. Especially for North-African patients, a genetic factor can be suspected, namely mutations in Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2). Memory clinics with a high rate of FGI may provide interesting data and insights into the prevalence of DLB, genetic and environmental differences.
- Published
- 2021
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