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Prevalence of dementia in three ethnic groups: the South Florida program on aging and health
Demirovic J, Prineas R, Loewenstein D, Bean J, Duara R, Sevush S, Szapocznik J.. Annals of epidemiology, 2003-07-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
To determine the prevalence of cognitive impairment and dementia in a multi-ethnic community, we examined a population sample of 2,759 elderly (65 years of age and older) African American, Hispanic-Cuban and white non-Hispanic men and women of Dade County, Florida. The Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ) was used as a screening test. The prevalence of cognitive impairment for African American men was 17.0% and women 16.7%; Cuban men 9.4% and women 11.4%; and white non-Hispanic men 9.0% and women 8.5%. Participants with cognitive impairment were referred to two Memory Disorder Clinics for diagnosis of dementia/Alzheimer's disease (AD). SPMSQ cutpoints took account of race and education. The prevalence of dementia/AD was adjusted for sensitivity and specificity of the SPMSQ in each sex/ethnic group. The prevalence of dementia among African American men (20.9%) was twice that among white non-Hispanic men (11.6%). White non-Hispanic and Cuban women had a similar prevalence of dementia (12.1% vs. 12.9%). Low SPMSQ specificity for Cuban men and African American women gave unstable dementia prevalence estimates. More than two thirds of all dementia cases had AD, and among white non-Hispanics, women had double the prevalence of AD among men (10.9% vs. 5.4%). The prevalence of AD among African American men was more than two and a half times greater than the prevalence among white non-Hispanic men (14.4% vs. 5.4%). Age (p = 0.001), family history of AD (p = 0.02) and African American (p = 0.0001) or Cuban (p = 0.006) ethnic group were directly and independently associated with the prevalence of AD.
Key findings
- Age (p = 0.001), family history of AD (p = 0.02) and African American (p = 0.0001) or Cuban (p = 0.006) ethnic group were directly and independently associated with the prevalence of AD.
Why it matters
In 2,759 adults aged 65+ in Dade County, Florida, estimated Alzheimer's prevalence among African American men was more than two and a half times that of white non-Hispanic men (14.4% vs 5.4%), and among white non-Hispanics it was twice as high in women as in men (10.9% vs 5.4%). Age, family history of AD and African American or Cuban ethnicity were each independently associated with AD prevalence. The authors note that estimates for Cuban men and African American women were unstable because the screening test performed poorly in those groups, and the design shows associations, not causes.
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Study details
- Effect size17.0%; 16.7%; 9.4%
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
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 (Annals of epidemiology) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Annals of Epidemiology: journal h-index 184 (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 | 2003 — 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 200 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.0 citations a year over 25 year(s) since 2003 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 22 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 16 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author José Szapocznik: h-index 76 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Miami: institution h-index 998 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12875807) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
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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. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Demirovic, J., Prineas, R., Loewenstein, D., Bean, J., Duara, R., Sevush, S., et al. (2003). Prevalence of dementia in three ethnic groups: the South Florida program on aging and health. Annals of epidemiology. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1047-2797(02)00437-4
Vancouver
Demirovic J, Prineas R, Loewenstein D, Bean J, Duara R, Sevush S, et al. Prevalence of dementia in three ethnic groups: the South Florida program on aging and health. Annals of epidemiology. 2003. doi:10.1016/s1047-2797(02)00437-4. PMID: 12875807.
BibTeX
@article{demirovic2003-12875807,
author = {Demirovic, J. and Prineas, R. and Loewenstein, D. and Bean, J. and Duara, R. and Sevush, S. and Szapocznik, J.},
title = {{Prevalence of dementia in three ethnic groups: the South Florida program on aging and health}},
journal = {Annals of epidemiology},
year = {2003},
doi = {10.1016/s1047-2797(02)00437-4},
pmid = {12875807},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/s1047-2797(02)00437-4}
}
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