Alzheimer's and non-Alzheimer's dementia: a critical review of pharmacological and nonpharmacological strategies

Objective. Dementia is an age-related progressive neurodegenerative disorder afflicting about 5% of the world's population, and it is expected to grow dramatically in the future keeping in view our ageing society. Currently available medications appear to be able to produce moderate symptomatic benefits but do not to stop disease progression. In this article, the management of the disorder, including the currently available drugs as well as psychosocial strategies, is discussed. Methods. A computerized search on Pubmed from 1980 to 2006 was carried out and all articles evaluated and graded on NICE guidelines. Results and conclusions. Currently evaluated and accepted medications only bring about a reduction in the deteriorating course. A combination of pharmacotherapy and psychosocial management is the need of the hour