Introduction: Dementia is a very common disorder that affects people over 65 years old all over the world. Apart from the cognitive decline, Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) are a crucial matter in dementia, because they affect up to 90% of the patients during the course of their illness. Irritability has been found to be a common BPSD and one of the most distressing behaviors for the caregivers. The aim of the current study was to explore the efficacy of a combination of non-pharmacological interventions to treat irritability.
Methods: Sixty patients with different types and stages of dementia with irritability were participated in a cross-over RCT. Three non-pharmacological interventions were used; (a) Validation Therapy (VT)/Psycho-educational program, (b) Aromatherapy/massage and (c) Music Therapy (MT). The study assessed the three non-pharmacological interventions in order to find the most effective combination of the interventions. This study did not compare pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments. The interventions lasted for five days. There was no drop-out rate. All patients were assessed at baseline using Mini Mental State of Examination (MMSE), Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination Revised (ACE-R), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), Functional Rating Scale for symptoms in dementia (FRSSD), and Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) (sub questions for irritability). Only NPI used for the assessment after each intervention. The analyses used categorical variables, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Chi-square test and z value score.
Results: The most effective combination of non-pharmacological interventions was Aromatherapy/massage ( = 0.003)-VT plus Psycho-educational program ( = 0.014) plus MT ( = 0.018). The same combination was the most effective for the caregivers' burden, too ( = 0.026).
Conclusions: The above combination of non-pharmacological interventions can reduce irritability in patients with dementia and caregivers' burden.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9221291 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12060691 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Sleep disorders in rheumatoid arthritis, axial spondyloarthritis and psoriatic arthritis.
Rheumatol Int
January 2025
Department of Rheumatology, Immunology and Internal Medicine, University Hospital in Kraków, Kraków, Poland.
Sleep disorders are relatively common among patients with inflammatory arthritis (IA) and have a substantial impact on their quality of life. Although patients frequently recognize poor sleep as an important component of their disease, dyssomnias remain often underdiagnosed and untreated in routine clinical practice. This narrative review examines the prevalence, mechanism, risk factors and management of dyssomnias in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExoskeleton Training for Spinal Cord Injury Neuropathic Pain (ExSCIP): Protocol for a Phase 2 Feasibility Randomised Trial.
HRB Open Res
September 2024
UCD School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, Health Sciences Centre, University College Dublin, Dublin, Leinster, Ireland.
Background: Following Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), 53% of people develop neuropathic pain (NP). NP can be more debilitating than other consequences of SCI, and a persistent health issue. Pharmacotherapies are commonly recommended for NP management in SCI, although severe pain often remains refractory to these treatments in many sufferers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMeta-narrative review: the impact of music therapy on sleep and future research directions.
Front Neurol
January 2025
Art Healing and Cognitive Science Research Center, Department of Music, School of Arts and Design, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, China.
Sleep is essential to human health, yet 27% of the global population suffers from sleep issues, which often lead to fatigue, depression, and impaired cognitive function. While pharmacological treatments exist, non-pharmacological approaches like music therapy have shown promise in enhancing sleep quality. This review, analyzing 27 studies with various experimental paradigms, confirms that music therapy significantly improves subjective sleep quality, largely by alleviating anxiety and regulating mood through perceptual pathways.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLong-Term Multimodal Exercise Intervention for Patients with Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration: Feasibility and Preliminary Outcomes.
Dement Geriatr Cogn Dis Extra
December 2024
Division of Clinical Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
Introduction: After Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is the second most common form of early-onset dementia. Despite the heavy burden of care for FTLD, pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments with sufficient efficacy remain scarce. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of a multimodal exercise program for FTLD and to examine preliminary changes in the clinical outcomes of the program in FTLD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMelatonin: A Review of the Evidence for Use in Hospital Settings.
Pharmacol Res Perspect
February 2025
Medication Safety (Formulary) Clinical Excellence Commission, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
New onset insomnia is often experienced by patients during hospitalization due to environmental disruptions, pain and increased patient care activities. Patient distress arising from poor sleep quality and quantity often results in the prescribing of hypnotics. Melatonin use in hospital settings is common and is increasingly used for off label indications including primary insomnia in those aged < 55 years, prevention of delirium and to facilitate benzodiazepine discontinuation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!