10/66 Three Continents study

The three continents study has received funding from the World Health Organization, who were in turn supported by the Government of Japan.

The principal aim of this study is to develop and evaluate feasible community interventions for caregivers of people with dementia.

Connected with this primary objective, a population-based survey will also be carried out in each centre (1,000 urban residents aged 65 and over, and 1,000 rural residents). The survey will enabled the prevalence of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, study aetiology and describe the impact of these conditions to be reported.

The centres

Dominican Republic (Santo Domingo and rural neighbourhood)
China (Beijing and rural neighbourhood)
India (Chennai, city and Vellore, rural neighbourhood)

Pictures of the centres and their locations

The study design

Multi-purpose health workers are trained to identify persons with probable dementia in their district
The survey team conducts a house to house survey of the same districts, identifying and interviewing all those aged 65 years and over
The MPHW lists are compared with the survey results to check their accuracy
Those identified in the survey as suffering from dementia are randomised to receiving an education and training intervention from the MPHW, either straight away, or after a delay of six months
After six months, the outcome for caregivers and people with dementia is assessed, and compared between the immediate and delayed intervention group

The measures

For the older person

Dementia diagnosis (and subtype, e.g Alzheimer's Disease / Vascular dementia)
Mental health (depression, anxiety)
Physical health
Disability
Use of health services
Diet
Nutrition
Risk factors for vascular disease (eg smoking, hypertension)
Socio-economic status
Living circumstances
Social network and social support

For the carer / co-resident

Demographic details
Care inputs (type of care provided, and time spent caring)
Psychological strain
Economic strain
Behavioural symptoms of dementia