The effect of nonpharmacologic therapy on global cognitive functions in patients with Alzheimer's disease: an updated meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background

The effectiveness of non-pharmacologic therapy (NPT) in treating the global cognition dysfunction associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) has not been clearly demonstrated. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to address this issue.

Methods

The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PUBMED, EMBASE and other databases were searched, and outcomes measured by the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) or the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog) were analysed.

Results

Seven types of NPT were included, 25 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were selected and 3238 participants were included in the meta-analysis. There were significant differences between the NPT and control groups in the MMSE and ADAS-cog scores.

Conclusions

Although more extensive trials need to be performed, NPT has been observed to be beneficial in AD patients.