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Introduction

Whilst most people remain fit and well into old age, significant numbers of people will experience some form of age-related mental ill-health.

This learning object introduces you to some of the key facts and statistics about mental health in older people. It explains who might be at risk of developing a mental illness as they grow older and why. It also includes information about people who have experienced serious mental illness such as schizophrenia throughout their lives and the main issues facing them as they age.

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Introduction

To begin with, it is important to understand the difference between statistics that measure the incidence of a mental illness and those that measure the prevalence. Look at each of the two statements below in turn to see the differences explained and then look at the useful tip for remembering the difference:

Prevalence

Prevalence measures the total number of people still living with a particular condition at a given point in time, regardless of when they were diagnosed. It is often given as a percentage of either the total population, or a subgroup of the population.

For example, in 2006, there were 775,000 people in the UK with a diagnosis if dementia. This figure represents 5% of the population aged over 65 years.

The statement: “Upwards of 1 in 20 people over the age of 65 has dementia” (Godfrey et al 2005: viii) is also an expression of the same level of prevalence because 1 in 20 is just another way of saying 5%.

Incidence

Incidence measures the number of new cases of a disease or condition that are identified within a set time period, such as within one year. For example, 163,000 new ‘cases’ of dementia are currently diagnosed in England and Wales each year.

Incidence is a useful measure because it highlights the rate of increase or decrease in the occurrence of a disease such as dementia.

Useful tip

A useful way of remembering the difference between incidence and prevalence is to consider the following example: even if no new cases of dementia were recorded in July 2007 (so the incidence in July 2007 would be 0), dementia would continue to be prevalent because there will still be people in the population living with dementia who were diagnosed before July 2007.

Prevalence is the type of measure used most often in this learning object.

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Introduction

The key facts below show the prevalence of depression, which is the most common form of mental disorder in older people aged 65+, and dementia, the second most common.

Depression

  • 10-15% of people aged 65+ are thought to suffer from depression. This compares with approximately 9% in the younger population.

  • The prevalence of depression amongst people in residential care is thought to be around 40%.

  • The prevalence of depression among women is roughly double that of men across all age groups.

Dementia

  • 5% of people aged 65+ have been diagnosed with some form of dementia.

  • The prevalence of dementia rises sharply in the older age groups. Among those aged 80+, the prevalence is as high as 20%. In nursing homes the prevalence is up to 70%.

You will now consider some of the issues relating to depression in a little more depth.