A study of knowledge on Alzheimer's disease and attitudes of Chinese social residents toward Alzheimer's disease: A cross-sectional survey in China

Objective: Social residents become increasingly concerned about Alzheimer's dementia (AD) as a global public health crisis. China's AD population is the largest and growing fastest. However, no study has examined Chinese social residents' knowledge and attitudes concerning Alzheimer's illness. This study examined Chinese social residents' AD knowledge and attitudes using the Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale (ADKS) and dementia attitudes scale (DAS). Design: Cross-sectional survey. Sample: 338 social residents over 18 years old from various Chinese regions were recruited using convenient sampling. Measurements: The ADKS (Chinese) and the Dementia Attitude Scale (Chinese) were used to assess their knowledge and attitude regarding AD. Results: A total of 328 respondents (97.04%) completed the survey. ADKS = 19.44 +/- 3.33; DAS = 86.98 +/- 12.7. Age and education levels can have a substantial impact on ADKS scores, and education levels can have a substantial impact on DAS scores. Conclusions: Low levels of awareness and acceptance of AD exist among Chinese residents. The results indicate that China must immediately implement comprehensive AD education for its social residents.