Reminiscence Therapy for Dementia: An Abridged Cochrane Systematic Review of the Evidence From Randomized Controlled Trials
Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics
O'Philbin, L., Woods, B., et al. (2018).
Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics, 18(9), 715-727.
This systematic review examines the effects of reminiscence therapy on quality of life, communication, cognition, and mood for individuals with dementia.
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Randomized controlled trials
16 (meta-analysis)
Six randomized controlled trials examined the effects of reminiscence therapy compared to no treatment controls on communication and interaction. Findings from the meta-analyses revealed a statistically significant difference favoring reminiscence post-treatment (SMD = −0.51, 95% CI −0.97 to −0.05; Z = 2.18, P = 0.03). Four studies reported a statistically significant difference favoring reminiscence therapy at follow up (SMD = −0.49, 95% CI −0.77 to −0.21; Z = 3.40, P = 0.0007).
Fourteen randomized controlled trials examined the effects of reminiscence therapy on cognition. Individuals with dementia exhibited greater improvements on cognitive assessments when compared to controls. However, "a significant effect was identified only when the intervention was individual or based in a care home" (p. 724). No significant effects were reported at follow up.
