【Aging, safety net and fiscal crisis in Japan】No.250: The number of missing persons with dementia is increasing

As explained in Column No. 25, the National Police Agency began to announce statistics on the number of missing persons with dementia in 2012. The number of missing persons without dementia decreased from 71,504 in 2012 to 69,454 in 2019 (Figure 1). In contrast, the number of missing persons with dementia increased from 9,607 to 17,479 throughout the same period.

Dementia is a disease whereby the higher the age, the higher the probability of suffering. Therefore, the growing proportion of missing people with dementia reflects an increase in the elderly population. Figure 2 shows the number of missing persons per 100,000 by age group. The index of elderly people (aged ≥80 years) increased greatly from 81.5 to 108.2. This suggests that the current system for supervising patients with dementia is not working, and new measures need to be taken.

Figure 1 Number of missing persons

*Please click the table image to find the original size image.
Source: National Police Agency

Figure 2 Missing persons per 100,000 by age group

*Please click the table image to find the original size image.
Source: National Police Agency