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BACKGROUND: Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPSs) are common in neurodegenerative diseases; however, little is known about the prevalence of NPSs in Hispanic populations. METHODS: Using data from community‐dwelling participants age 65 years and older enrolled in the 10/66 study (N = 11,768), we aimed to estimate the prevalence of NPSs in Hispanic populations with dementia, parkinsonism, and parkinsonism‐dementia (PDD) relative to healthy aging. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire (NPI‐Q) was used to assess NPSs. RESULTS: NPSs were highly prevalent in Hispanic populations with neurodegenerative disease; approximately 34.3%, 56.1%, and 61.2% of the participants with parkinsonism, dementia, and PDD exhibited three or more NPSs, respectively. NPSs were the major contributor to caregiver burden. DISCUSSION: Clinicians involved in the care of elderly populations should proactively screen for NPSs, especially in patients with parkinsonism, dementia, and PPD, and develop intervention plans to support families and caregivers. Highlights: Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPSs) are highly prevalent in Hispanic populations with neurodegenerative diseases.In healthy Hispanic populations, NPSs are predominantly mild and not clinically significant.The most common NPSs include depression, sleep disorders, irritability, and agitation.NPSs explain a substantial proportion of the variance in global caregiver burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Apolipoprotein E (APOE) is considered the major susceptibility gene for developing Alzheimer's disease. However, the strength of this risk factor is not well established across diverse Hispanic populations. Methods: We investigated the associations among APOE genotype, dementia prevalence, and memory performance (immediate and delayed recall scores) in Caribbean Hispanics (CH), African Americans (AA), Hispanic Americans (HA) and non‐Hispanic White Americans (NHW). Multivariable logistic regressions and negative binomial regressions were used to examine these associations by subsample. Results: Our final dataset included 13,516 participants (5198 men, 8318 women) across all subsamples, with a mean age of 74.8 years. Prevalence of APOE ε4 allele was similar in CHs, HAs, and NHWs (21.8%–25.4%), but was substantially higher in AAs (33.6%; P < 0.001). APOE ε4 carriers had higher dementia prevalence across all groups. Discussion: APOE ε4 was similarly associated with increased relative risk of dementia and lower memory performance in all subsamples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]