TY - JOUR
T1 - Nonpharmacological therapy for the management of neuropsychiatric symptoms of alzheimer's disease
T2 - Linking evidence to practice
AU - Staedtler, Amber V.
AU - Nunez, Diane
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Sigma Theta Tau International.
PY - 2015/4/1
Y1 - 2015/4/1
N2 - Background: Behavioral and psychiatric symptoms of dementia affect up to 90% of all patients at some point during their dementing illness. Today, many of these symptoms are treated with pharmacological therapy alone, incongruent with clinical recommendations. Barriers to the use of nonpharmacological interventions with dementia include a lack of education among caregivers on available options, shortage of time for implementation, lack of education on effects of nonpharmacological therapy, poor staff to resident ratios, and unmodifiable physical environments. Aims: The purpose of this paper is to explore current literature regarding the implementation of nonpharmacological therapy as an adjunct treatment to manage agitation in dementia, to identify practice discrepancies seen commonly among formal and informal caregivers, and to make recommendations for implementing evidence into practice. Methods: A systematic review of the literature published between 2009 and 2014 was conducted. Four databases were searched including CINAHL, Pubmed, the Cochrane Library, and PsycInfo. Findings: The most prevalent and substantial conclusion among the 10 studies evaluated is that nonpharmacological therapy is safe and effective. Although not every study was able to show statistically significant outcomes when compared to controls, all studies demonstrated a positive trend toward decreasing agitation without any adverse side effects. Linking Evidence to Action: A multicomponent caregiver education program focused on evidence-based nonpharmacological strategies for addressing agitation in persons with Alzheimer's disease has the potential to decrease agitation, improve patient outcomes, and increase caregiver satisfaction.
AB - Background: Behavioral and psychiatric symptoms of dementia affect up to 90% of all patients at some point during their dementing illness. Today, many of these symptoms are treated with pharmacological therapy alone, incongruent with clinical recommendations. Barriers to the use of nonpharmacological interventions with dementia include a lack of education among caregivers on available options, shortage of time for implementation, lack of education on effects of nonpharmacological therapy, poor staff to resident ratios, and unmodifiable physical environments. Aims: The purpose of this paper is to explore current literature regarding the implementation of nonpharmacological therapy as an adjunct treatment to manage agitation in dementia, to identify practice discrepancies seen commonly among formal and informal caregivers, and to make recommendations for implementing evidence into practice. Methods: A systematic review of the literature published between 2009 and 2014 was conducted. Four databases were searched including CINAHL, Pubmed, the Cochrane Library, and PsycInfo. Findings: The most prevalent and substantial conclusion among the 10 studies evaluated is that nonpharmacological therapy is safe and effective. Although not every study was able to show statistically significant outcomes when compared to controls, all studies demonstrated a positive trend toward decreasing agitation without any adverse side effects. Linking Evidence to Action: A multicomponent caregiver education program focused on evidence-based nonpharmacological strategies for addressing agitation in persons with Alzheimer's disease has the potential to decrease agitation, improve patient outcomes, and increase caregiver satisfaction.
KW - Agitation
KW - Alzheimer's disease
KW - Behavioral and psychiatric symptoms of dementia
KW - Caregivers
KW - Dementia
KW - Nonpharmacological interventions
KW - Training program
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964237514&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84964237514&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/wvn.12086
DO - 10.1111/wvn.12086
M3 - Review article
C2 - 25809879
AN - SCOPUS:84964237514
SN - 1545-102X
VL - 12
SP - 108
EP - 115
JO - Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing
JF - Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing
IS - 2
ER -