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Prevalence of dementia in a rural setting: A report from India
Rajkumar S, Kumar S, Thara R.. International journal of geriatric psychiatry, 1997-07-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
A study to estimate the prevalence of dementia in a rural population was conducted in a community located on the outskirts of Madras city in South India. Seven hundred and fifty elderly 60 years of age and older, selected using the cluster sampling technique, were interviewed using the Geriatric Mental State schedule (GMS). The prevalence of dementia was 3.5%, the percentage increasing with age. These rural prevalence estimates were higher than in urban settings (WHO multicentre study on cognitive impairment and dementia in developed and developing countries, unpublished) and male/female differences were negligible. The difficulties associated with the use of the GMS in a non-literature rural population are discussed. The implications of these findings for India's growing elderly population are highlighted.
Key findings
- The difficulties associated with the use of the GMS in a non-literature rural population are discussed.
- The implications of these findings for India's growing elderly population are highlighted.
Why it matters
This study estimated the prevalence of dementia in a rural population in South India, finding 3.5% among people aged 60 and older. It is a description of how common dementia is in one setting, not a treatment, cure or prevention.
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Study details
- Effect size3.5%
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 41/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (International journal of geriatric psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry: journal h-index 190 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1997 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 106 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 3.4 citations a year over 31 year(s) since 1997 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 8 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 4 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author RANGASWAMY THARA: h-index 53 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | Madras Medical College: institution h-index 108 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 9251930) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 41 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199707)12:7<702::aid-gps489>3.0.co;2-h
- PubMed: 9251930
- Original source →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Rajkumar, S., Kumar, S., & Thara, R. (1997). Prevalence of dementia in a rural setting: A report from India. International journal of geriatric psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199707)12:7<702::aid-gps489>3.0.co;2-h
Vancouver
Rajkumar S, Kumar S, Thara R. Prevalence of dementia in a rural setting: A report from India. International journal of geriatric psychiatry. 1997. doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199707)12:7<702::aid-gps489>3.0.co;2-h. PMID: 9251930.
BibTeX
@article{rajkumar1997-9251930,
author = {Rajkumar, S. and Kumar, S. and Thara, R.},
title = {{Prevalence of dementia in a rural setting: A report from India}},
journal = {International journal of geriatric psychiatry},
year = {1997},
doi = {10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199707)12:7<702::aid-gps489>3.0.co;2-h},
pmid = {9251930},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(199707)12:7<702::aid-gps489>3.0.co;2-h}
}
Later studies that cite this one
8 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references.