60,000 cases of dementia ‘misdiagnosed as psychosis’

HALF the people suffering from a common form of dementia are being misdiagnosed by doctors – and in some cases given anti-psychotic drugs that increase their risk of death, an expert has warned.

Dr Clive Ballard, professor of agerelated disease at the University of Exeter, said that GPS are missing around 60,000 cases a year of Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), which is often mistaken for a psychiatric disorder or Parkinson’s disease.

The disease affects around 120,000 people in Britain, and accounts for 15 per cent of all dementia cases. Like Alzheimer’s, it is caused by the build-up of proteins in the brain – known as Lewy bodies – which stop neurons from communicating correctly.

But because patients often suffer from hallucinations, doctors mistake the symptoms and prescribe anti-psychotics, which can trigger renal failure in as little as 48 hours. The medication also damages muscle cells and increases the risk of falls.

To try to combat the problem, specialists have issued a new set of guidelines to improve knowledge, diagnosis and management of the condition.

Prof Ballard, a leading expert who has contributed to the new guidance, said: “Dementia with Lewy bodies is very common. On average people have to see four doctors before they get a correct diagnosis. And they can end up on anti-psychotic medication that can increase their mortality fourfold.”