When it comes to dementia, patients often go undiagnosed or are misdiagnosed. Now, a working group convened by the Alzheimer’s Association has announced new recommendations that could improve patient and caregiver outcomes. 

There are currently no such guidelines in primary and specialty care settings. Some of the recommendations include providing timely evaluations if someone self-reports any cognitive or behavioral changes and no longer dismissing those concerns as “normal aging” without an assessment.

Dr. Ali Atri of the Banner Sun Health Research Institute presented the recommendations at this year’s Alzheimer’s Association’s International Conference.

In a video made before the conference, he says a timely diagnosis doesn’t always happen.

"We know that up to half, 50 percent of people in various stages do not know they have Alzheimer’s disease even if they have symptoms for example until very, very late in the course of the disease," Atri said.

And often that can cause harmful and costly delays in getting the right diagnosis and providing the right kind of care.