TY - JOUR
T1 - Determinants of semantic and episodic memory decline among older adults in Ghana
T2 - Evidence from the WHO study on global AGEing and adult health Ghana wave 2
AU - Ekem-Ferguson, George
AU - Tetteh, John
AU - Malm, Keziah
AU - Yawson, Anita Ohenewa
AU - Biritwum, Richard
AU - Mensah, George
AU - Yawson, Alfred Edwin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors
PY - 2023/12
Y1 - 2023/12
N2 - Objective: Determined factors associated with semantic (SM) and episodic memory (EM) among older adults aged 50 years and older in Ghana. Methods: Data from WHO Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE) Ghana Wave 2 was used for this study. Semantic memory (SM) and Episodic memory (EM) were the main study outcomes separately. The study employed Nested Ordinary Least Square regression analysis by sequentially adding 6 blocks of variables and comparison tests between the nested models. Results: The study involved 3575 adult Ghanaians aged 50 years and older with a mean ± standard deviation of 62.6 ± 18.4 years. The overall mean ± SD of EM and SM were 5.86 ± 2.51 and 11.69 ± 8.59 respectively. Overall, analysis from block 6 showed a significant variation in SM by approximately 16.9%(ΔR2 = 1.17%) where increasing age, never married (β = −1.55; 95% CI = −2.41–0.69), being resident in Greater Accra (regional disparity) (β = −3.45; 95% CI = −4.73–2.20), underweight (β = −0.81;95% CI = −1.34–0.27), and moderate self-rated health (SRH) (β = −0.98; 95% CI = −1.52–0.45) significantly decreased SM. Similarly, increasing age, separated/divorced (β = −0.22; 95% CI = −0.35–0.87), being resident in Greater Accra (β = −0.53; 95% CI = −0.80–0.26), and moderate SRH (β = −0.20; 95% CI = −0.36–−0.04) significantly decrease EM with an overall significant variation of approximately 22.9%(ΔR2 = 2.7%). Conclusions: Increasing age, sex, marital status, regional disparity, and poor SRH significantly decreased both Semantic memory and Episodic memory. Higher educational attainment and life satisfaction significantly influenced SM and EM. These provide pointers to important socio-demographic determinants of SM and EM with implications for the implementation of the Ghana national ageing policy 2010, ‘ageing with security and dignity’, and as a key consideration for healthy ageing towards 2030.
AB - Objective: Determined factors associated with semantic (SM) and episodic memory (EM) among older adults aged 50 years and older in Ghana. Methods: Data from WHO Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE) Ghana Wave 2 was used for this study. Semantic memory (SM) and Episodic memory (EM) were the main study outcomes separately. The study employed Nested Ordinary Least Square regression analysis by sequentially adding 6 blocks of variables and comparison tests between the nested models. Results: The study involved 3575 adult Ghanaians aged 50 years and older with a mean ± standard deviation of 62.6 ± 18.4 years. The overall mean ± SD of EM and SM were 5.86 ± 2.51 and 11.69 ± 8.59 respectively. Overall, analysis from block 6 showed a significant variation in SM by approximately 16.9%(ΔR2 = 1.17%) where increasing age, never married (β = −1.55; 95% CI = −2.41–0.69), being resident in Greater Accra (regional disparity) (β = −3.45; 95% CI = −4.73–2.20), underweight (β = −0.81;95% CI = −1.34–0.27), and moderate self-rated health (SRH) (β = −0.98; 95% CI = −1.52–0.45) significantly decreased SM. Similarly, increasing age, separated/divorced (β = −0.22; 95% CI = −0.35–0.87), being resident in Greater Accra (β = −0.53; 95% CI = −0.80–0.26), and moderate SRH (β = −0.20; 95% CI = −0.36–−0.04) significantly decrease EM with an overall significant variation of approximately 22.9%(ΔR2 = 2.7%). Conclusions: Increasing age, sex, marital status, regional disparity, and poor SRH significantly decreased both Semantic memory and Episodic memory. Higher educational attainment and life satisfaction significantly influenced SM and EM. These provide pointers to important socio-demographic determinants of SM and EM with implications for the implementation of the Ghana national ageing policy 2010, ‘ageing with security and dignity’, and as a key consideration for healthy ageing towards 2030.
KW - Episodic memory
KW - Ghana
KW - Older adults
KW - Semantic memory
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85175300159&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.dialog.2023.100118
DO - 10.1016/j.dialog.2023.100118
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85175300159
SN - 2772-6533
VL - 2
JO - Dialogues in Health
JF - Dialogues in Health
M1 - 100118
ER -