The burden of neurological disease in an older Canadian population

Neurological diseases are those that affect the brain, spinal cord, nerves, and muscles. These diseases account for a large proportion of the disability burden suffered by people around the world. This proportion is increasing over time, in part due to our aging populations. The purpose of the proposed study is to examine the burden of neurological diseases in the Canadian population, including epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, headache disorders, and stroke. We will explore the number of individuals in Canada with these diseases, how these individuals may be more likely to have other diseases, and what impact these additional, comorbid diseases may have on how individuals make use of healthcare resources (e.g. doctor visits and hospitalizations). Finally, we will pay particular attention to Parkinson’s disease, and examine for potentially associated comorbidity factors, participant characteristics, and life habits.

We completed analyses on the lifetime prevalence of five neurological diseases, as well as measured the burden of comorbidities and healthcare utilization in people with epilepsy as opposed to the general population. We found that overall these burdens were high in people with the neurological diseases we investigated. These findings will help to inform public policy as well as directions for future research.