Dementia-Related Missing Person Reports Reach Record High for Tenth Consecutive Year

According to a National Police Agency survey, 84,910 people were reported missing in 2022, for a year-on-year increase of 5,692. Among the missing persons, 18,709 had dementia. This figure is 1.95 times higher than in 2012, when statistics were first gathered, marking the tenth consecutive record high.

Nearly all of the missing persons were located within a week, and 77.5% were found on the same day the missing-persons report was submitted. However, there were 491 fatalities due to accidents or sudden illness while wandering; 2.6% of the missing persons with dementia were confirmed to be dead.

The number of missing seniors has been on the rise in recent years, including those with or without dementia. A look at the rate of missing persons per 100,000 population shows that in 2014 this was 56.9 for people in their seventies and 73.8 for those in their eighties; in 2022, the numbers increased to 65.9 and 108.2, respectively.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)