Non-English speaking background patients in a predominantly English-speaking region may be more likely to present with a dementia other than Alzheimer’s disease

Information on 54 patients was retrospectively collected to compare the presentation trends of cognitive disorders in those of non-English speaking background (NESB) to English speaking background (ESB) attending an Australian memory clinic that extensively uses fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) in the diagnosis of cognitive concerns. NESB patients were less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) as the sole neurodegenerative diagnosis (Fisher exact test, p = 0.08), and NESB patients with dementia were more likely to have non-AD dementia (Fisher exact test, p = 0.06). They experienced symptoms 18 months longer before receiving a formal diagnosis (t(46) = 2.2, p = 0.03). Older elderly NESB females were under represented in those presenting to the clinic (Fisher exact test, p = 0.04). The clinical work-up of NESB patients as opposed to those of ESB relied more heavily on FDG PET (Fisher exact test, p = 0.04). ESB and NESB patients may have different attitudes towards dementia, affecting how they present, and biomarkers may be more heavily relied on when language affects history taking and neuropsychological testing.