(London)  --  British researchers say dementia, not blindness, is a leading cause of disability in the elderly in poor countries.
   They studied 15,000 elderly people in seven low-and-middle-income countries.

   The World Health Organization had previously estimated that visual impairment and blindness were the biggest problems.

   The researchers say the problem and costs to society associated with it will increase as populations age.

    Study leader, Renata Sousa of the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, emphasized that chronic diseases of the brain and mind deserve increased prioritization.

   She notes that along with disability, they lead to dependency and present stressful, complex, long-term challenges to careers.

   The study is published in the journal "The Lancet."


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