Dementia cases could reach five-digit levels within a decade

Macau, now in a severe aging phase with 14% of residents aged 65 or older in 2023, could see dementia cases rise from an estimated 6,000 in 2021 to about 10,000 by 2036.

The estimate was highlighted on public broadcaster TDM’s radio program yesterday during a discussion on dementia in the city featuring representatives from Conde S. Januário Hospital, Kiang Wu Hospital, the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS), and the Macao Dementia Association.

Notably, the Health Bureau (SSM) currently has more than 4,000 registered dementia patients receiving treatment, and Conde S. Januário Hospital reports about 600 new diagnoses each year – a figure described on the program as “quite substantial,” with participants warning that cases are likely to rise as the population ages.

Dementia is a chronic degenerative disease – not a normal part of aging – that progressively impairs function and daily life and can require full-time care in advanced stages.

In Macau, the SSM and IAS established the Centre for Cognitive and Brain Sciences in 2016 to provide one-stop diagnosis, treatment, and support, and in 2018 set up the Support Centre for Dementia to promote early prevention, detection, diagnosis, treatment, and intervention.

“Since we began promoting early detection, prevention, and public awareness in 2016, we have seen more patients seeking treatment at earlier stages rather than in the middle or late stages of the disease,” said Wong Sio Mui, the Conde S. Januário Hospital representative. “More people coming forward in the early stages enables timely intervention and helps slow disease progression.”

Wong said the government and relevant agencies will continue to expand screening, treatment, and support resources to meet the future challenge of rising dementia numbers.

“The annual increase of about 600 new cases actually reflects the effectiveness of our early screening efforts,” added Cheang U Keong, an official from the IAS.

According to yesterday’s program, early dementia typically appears as a decline in recent memory – forgetting recent conversations, repeating questions, or frequently misplacing items – while other early signs include impaired calculation, disorientation to time or place, and mood changes such as anxiety, depression, or irritability.

Psychiatric and behavioral symptoms tend to appear in the middle to late stages. Authorities urged families who notice these signs to seek prompt medical attention at neurology, geriatrics, or cognitive assessment clinics, or an initial internal medicine evaluation if needed, and to bring medical history, current medications, and concrete examples of functional or behavioral changes to appointments.

They also recommended completing basic examinations and lab tests or uploading relevant information in advance via the “My Health” platform on their Macao One Account to help clinicians assess patients and arrange follow-up care.

Physicians cautioned that cognitive or attention problems in psychiatric patients do not necessarily indicate dementia, which requires specialist evaluation. They also noted that significant psychiatric symptoms can develop in later stages of dementia and are usually managed by psychiatrists, while neurologists treat some cases, particularly vascular dementia linked to stroke or other neurological diseases.

“Dementia cannot be diagnosed on screening scales alone,” Wong said. “A definitive diagnosis requires information from clinical interviews, family descriptions, and functional assessments. Family members should accompany patients to consultations where possible, as they can provide crucial examples of daily changes that aid diagnosis.” Authorities reiterated plans to streamline screening and referral pathways and to raise public awareness of early warning signs through community outreach.

The IAS said Macau’s aging population and rising life expectancy will drive continued growth in demand for dementia services, and officials have expanded local long-term care capacity in response.

The bureau said it has developed day care and comprehensive elderly care facilities tailored for people with dementia to strengthen support for those in the early and middle stages and to match services to different disease stages.

Caregiver support is now provided in more than 10 elderly day care centers across Macau, including training in care techniques and the loan of caregiving resources. The bureau added that over 200 social service, medical, educational, and youth organizations have joined the “dementia-friendly alliance,” a joint initiative with the Health Bureau and community groups to raise awareness and reduce stigma.

In response to Macau’s aging population and rising dementia cases, health authorities have built extra staffing and services into the long-term health blueprint – with annual staffing increases tied to demographic shifts and a complementary hospital-to-community care network – and say waiting times from assessment to consultation have been cut to about four weeks.