Characteristics of the Dementia Syndrome in Primary Health Care

Introduction: Dementia is one of the most important organic brain disorders. It manifests itself chronically and progressively, with alterations in cognitive functions such as memory, thinking, orientation, calculation, language and learning ability without initially causing consciousness disorders. Objective: To characterize patients diagnosed with dementia syndrome in the Geriatrics Clinic of the "Policlínico Asdrúbal López Vázquez" in Guantánamo from June 2019 to July 2021. Methods: An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in the "Policlínico Asdrúbal López Vázquez" in the municipality and province of Guantánamo. In the statistical analysis, the following variables were extracted: gender, age group, educational level, toxic habits, family medical history, personal medical history, cognitive impairment group (according to Mini-Mental State Examination), and the level of patient independence (according to the Katz Index and Lawton Index). Descriptive indicators, as well as totals and percentages, were obtained using the statistical software SPSS 23.0. Results: According to the results of the Folstein´s Mini Mental State Examination and sex variable, we found a predominance of females in the group with cognitive impairment of 21.7% (17). It can also be observed that the educational level is a statistically significant factor (p = 0.001) in dementia syndrome, as individuals with a lower educational level have 5.53 times higher risk (RR=5.5). Conclusions: Female sex, low educational level, smoking and high blood pressure are risk factors for cognitive impairment.