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16 Lundbeck Magazine 2009
Close to
her heart
The ratio of elderly persons in China is rising rapidly, and 30
years from now the country will have as many persons with
dementia as in the entire rest of the developed world.
Professor Zhang Zhen-Xin is one of China’s
leading neurologists who specialize in
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. As a
professor at Beijing Union Medical College
Hospital, she has studied Alzheimer’s untiringly
for more than 40 years. She feels that it is her
responsibility to increase knowledge and
awareness of the disease as well as the
treatment for it. Because Professor Zhang is
convinced that treating Alzheimer’s is
definitely worth while.
“I have patients who have been treated for
more than 10 years, and who with the aid of
medicine can still communicate and perform
daily tasks when they have the right help,”
Zhang Zhen-Xin says. As adviser to the Chinese
health authority SFDA, she is also one of the
leading experts in the newly-established
Lundbeck Institute in China.
“China has a rapidly aging population. Thirty
years from now, the country will have just as
many persons with dementia as there are in
the entire rest of the developed world. Our
government is aware of the problem, which is
sometimes referred to as a ticking bomb,” says
Professor Zhang.
“Parkinson’s has been in focus for some time,”
she adds, “because several of our political
leaders – including Deng Xiao-Ping – had the
disease. But it was commonly thought that the
incidence of Alzheimer’s was significantly
lower in China than in the rest of the world.”
5.8 per cent have Alzheimer’s
Zhang Zhen-Xin helped disprove the myth
when she headed an epidemiological study of
the incidence of dementia in a number of
cities and rural areas in China. The study, which
took six years and included 40,000 persons, is
one of the most comprehensive in the world,
and clearly showed that the incidence of
dementia in China is on a par with that in the
rest of the world’s population. The study shows
that 5.8 per cent of the population above the
age of 65 develop Alzheimer’s.
“Dementia and Alzheimer’s used to be
considered a natural result of old age. And
even now, very few are diagnosed or treated
for the disease by a doctor. This is changing,
however. Especially in wealthy cities such as
Shanghai, the ratio of persons who seek
treatment is on the rise. And this despite the
fact that most people have to pay every yuan
themselves. There is no government
reimbursement for medication for dementia.”
China has a long tradition in herbal medicine.
And while professor Zhang does not dismiss
traditional medicine across the board, she does
believe it is often fraudulent when elderly
persons pay thousands of yuan for a small
amount of herbal medicine. And she
underscores the fact that most Chinese
consumers now prefer Western
pharmaceuticals, of whose efficacy has been
scientifically established.
Sons care for their parents
Zhang Zhen-Xin spent time in rural areas
where she literally went from bed to bed
visiting patients during the course of one of
her studies in the late 1990s.
“Conditions were often deplorable. In China,
the sons traditionally care for their parents. If
there are several sons, they care for their
parents in turn. Especially in poor rural areas,
however, there is little sympathy for persons
with dementia, and they risk being turned out
if caring for them becomes too difficult.
Persons with dementia often die within a few
years due to malnutrition, pneumonia and
poor care.”
“This situation has improved, especially among
well-educated people in the cities – first and
foremost due to the improved economy. The
PHOTO: Simon ladefoged