Drug-free therapies such as exercise, mental stimulation, massage, among others have been found effective than medications in treating depression in patients who have dementia, according to researchers at the University of Toronto.
The team looked at 256 studies, which included more than 28,000 people with dementia with or without major depression, and found that drug-less approaches could be of great help.
The paper, published Wednesday in the BMJ, found that medications alone were no more effective than usual care in treating depression in these patients, according to US News. However, 10 drug-free therapies were found more effective than usual care.
Lead researcher Dr. Jennifer Watt, Geriatrician-Scientist at the University of Toronto, said, “Non-drug approaches were associated with a meaningful reduction in symptoms of depression in people with dementia and without a diagnosis of a major depressive disorder.”
The drug-less interventions included exercise, cognitive stimulation, mental stimulation, massage and touch therapy, and reminiscence therapy – a treatment that helps dementia people remember events, people and places from their lives.
Other therapies included multidisciplinary care, psychotherapy combined with reminiscence therapy and environmental modification, occupational therapy, exercise combined with social interaction and mental stimulation, and animal therapy, according to US News.
Of these therapies, the researchers found massage and touch therapy, mental stimulation, and exercise more effective than some drugs. They said their findings suggest that clinicians should advise drug-free interventions to treat depression in dementia patients.
However, the researchers said the study had limitations. For example, it did not assess the complexity of depression, the effects on different types of dementia, and the costs or risks of drug and non-drug therapies.
The authors said doctors, caregivers, and patients have a role in putting these findings into practice.
Worldwide, of the 50 million people with dementia, nearly 16% also have major depression and 32% have some symptoms of depression that are not formally diagnosed, according to the researchers. The article was originally published Thursday on US News.
