Publication
Title
Practices and opinions about disclosure of the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease to patients with MCI or dementia : a survey among Belgian medical experts in the field of dementia
Author
Abstract
Previous surveys revealed that only a minority of clinicians routinely disclosed the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to their patients. Many health professionals fear that the disclosure could be harmful to the patient. Recent advances in the development of biomarkers and new diagnostic criteria allow for an earlier diagnosis of AD at the mild cognitive impairment (MCI) stage. The Belgian Dementia Council, a group of Belgian experts in the field of dementia, performed a survey among its 44 members about their opinions and practices regarding disclosure of the diagnosis of AD, including MCI due to AD, and its consequences. Twenty-six respondents declared that they often or always disclose the diagnosis of AD to patients with dementia and to patients with MCI when AD CSF biomarkers are abnormal. The majority observed that the disclosure of AD is rarely or never harmful to the patients. Their patients and their caregivers rarely or never demonstrated animosity towards the clinicians following disclosure of the diagnosis of AD. These results should reassure clinicians about the safety of AD diagnosis disclosure in most cases whether the patient is at the MCI or the dementia stage.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Acta neurologica Belgica. - Bruxelles, 1970, currens
Publication
Heidelberg : Springer heidelberg , 2020
ISSN
0300-9009 [print]
2240-2993 [online]
DOI
10.1007/S13760-020-01448-6
Volume/pages
120 :5 (2020) , p. 1157-1163
ISI
000552597200001
Pubmed ID
32715405
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 30.07.2020
Last edited 02.10.2024
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