Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2025 Apr 1:1-13.
doi: 10.1192/bjp.2025.11. Online ahead of print.

Systematic review of the efficacy of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for improving quality of life of people with dementia

Affiliations
Review

Systematic review of the efficacy of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for improving quality of life of people with dementia

Dominic Luxton et al. Br J Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Background: People with dementia (PwD) and their carers often consider maintaining good quality of life (QoL) more important than improvements in cognition or other symptoms of dementia. There is a clinical need for identifying interventions that can improve QoL of PwD. There are currently no evidence-based guidelines to help clinicians, patients and policy makers to make informed decisions regarding QoL in dementia.

Aims: To conduct the first comprehensive systematic review of all studies that investigated efficacy of any pharmacological or non-pharmacological intervention for improving QoL of PwD.

Method: Our review team identified eligible studies by comprehensively searching nine databases. We completed quality assessment, extracted relevant data and performed GRADE assessment of eligible studies. We conducted meta-analyses when three or more studies investigated an intervention for improving QoL of PwD.

Results: We screened 14 389 abstracts and included 324 eligible studies. Our meta-analysis confirmed level 1 evidence supporting the use of group cognitive stimulation therapy for improving QoL (standardised mean difference 0.25; P = 0.003) of PwD. Our narrative data synthesis revealed level 2 evidence supporting 42 non-pharmacological interventions, including those based on cognitive rehabilitation, reminiscence, occupational therapy, robots, exercise or music therapy. Current evidence supporting the use of any pharmacological intervention for improving QoL in dementia is limited.

Conclusions: Current evidence highlights the importance of non-pharmacological interventions and multidisciplinary care for supporting QoL of PwD. QoL should be prioritised when agreeing care plans. Further research focusing on QoL outcomes and investigating combined pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions is urgently needed.

Keywords: Dementia; meta-analysis; psychosocial intervention; quality of life; systematic review.

PubMed Disclaimer

LinkOut - more resources