digidem

There are currently more than 55 million people living with dementia worldwide, with forecasts predicting an increase to 150 million sufferers by 2050. In Bavaria alone, there are currently more than 270,000 people living with dementia, a figure that is expected to rise to 380,000 by 2040. The annual healthcare costs for dementia amount to 1.3 trillion US dollars worldwide; in Germany, the total costs of people with dementia for payers totalled 34 billion euros in 2016. The future care and support of these people represents one of the greatest challenges not only for the healthcare system, but also for society. This applies in particular to the care of people with dementia in rural areas.

A particular care challenge is already evident in the diagnostic process. The rate of undiagnosed cases of dementia is high. A study by Eichler et al. found that 60% of people living with dementia in Germany had no formal diagnosis, while the global figure is as high as 75% of undiagnosed dementia cases. Another problem lies in the long diagnosis periods. In the prospective, multi-centre longitudinal study Bavarian Dementia Survey (BayDem), Wolff et al. found that the median period between the first perceived symptoms and diagnosis in Bavaria was 16 months. In some international studies, this discrepancy is even more pronounced. As Barth et al. were able to show, rural areas are also particularly affected here due to more difficult access to prompt clarification and diagnosis for people with dementia.

Screening tools are one way of improving the diagnosis rate. A study with 146 participants in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania showed that diagnoses could be increased by almost 50% through upstream cognitive screening. Digital screening tools offer the additional advantage that they can be used at a low threshold, regardless of time and place.

The present development and validation of a digital screening tool for identifying cognitive impairments is part of the research project Digital Dementia Register Bavaria - digiDEM Bavaria, which is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of Health and Care (StMGP) (funding reference: G42d-G8300-2017/1606-83). digiDEM Bavaria aims to improve the living conditions of people with mild cognitive impairments and dementia and their carers in Bavaria, especially in rural areas. The project is based on two pillars: the establishment of a research register and the provision of digital services for people with dementia and their carers.

One of the aims of the Bavaria-wide research register is to gain a better understanding of the clinical complexity and long-term course of dementia. To this end, long-term data on the treatment, care and utilisation of services for people with dementia as well as the burden on carers in all administrative districts of Bavaria will be collected.

In addition, digiDEM Bavaria aims to make an active contribution to improving the lives of people with dementia and their carers by creating and continuously expanding a platform with digital services. Among other things, the platform includes offers for needs assessment, care burden, information transfer and knowledge verification.