Aims: Balance and gait disorders (B&GDs) increase with ageing and are associated with increased risk of dementia but they are not adequately evaluated and are largely underdiagnosed. Aims were to investigate the prevalence of B&GDs among patients with memory impairment and to identify the underlying aetiology.
Methods: 410 consecutive patients were enrolled. All patients had detailed history of memory, balance and gait including features suggesting dementia. A full examination included Mini-Mental State Examination and balance/gait functions by standing with eyes closed, on toes, and the tandem test. All patients had brain CT scan.
Results: 218 women and 192 men with memory impairment participated in the study, with a mean age of 74.1 years (range 32.6-94.8), and a mean MMSE score of 23.3 (SD 4.9). In participants with B&GDs (No=214), 39.9% had mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 11.7% had Alzheimer’s disease (AD), 29.9% had idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (INPH), 5.2% had mixed dementia (MD), 4.7% had vascular dementia (VD), 4.2% had Parkinson’s disease dementia (PDD), 0.9% had Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA), 2.9% of men had hypogonadism, and 0.9% had Lewy body dementia (LBD). In participants without B&GDs (No=196), 49.5% had MCI, 33.7% had AD, 6.6% had MD, 1% had VD, 3.1% had PPA, 4.5% of men had hypogonadism, and 2% had FLD.
Conclusions: The study shows that B&GDs are common among patients with memory impairment and that there are variations in the prevalence of dementia subtypes with the high prevalence of INPH among participants with B&GDs and AD among participants without B&GDs.