Spectrum News: UC researches racial health disparities in dementia

Hyacinth I. Hyacinth, PhD, MBBS, is currently leading a study seeking to determine how biological differences among racial groups contribute to higher rates of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias among non-Hispanic Black compared with non-Hispanic white patients. Dementia is more than twice as prevalent in non-Hispanic Black populations compared to non-Hispanic white populations in the United States, after controlling for known risk factors.

Hyacinth, associate professor of neurology and rehabilitation medicine and the Whitaker and Price Chair in Brain Health in UC’s College of Medicine, told Spectrum News the research in part will examine whether there is a higher disease burden of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) in non-Hispanic Black patients compared to non-Hispanic white patients. A higher CSVD burden could be one reason for higher rates of dementia and cognitive impairment in non-Hispanic Black patients, he said.

“If we can demonstrate that there is some biology behind these racial disparities and cognitive impairment and dementia, then that becomes a potential target for therapy,” Hyacinth told Spectrum News.

Watch the Spectrum News story. 

Read more about the research.

Featured photo of Hyacinth I. Hyacinth. Photo/Andrew Higley/University of Cincinnati.