Speech-Language Pathologist Interventions for Communication in Moderate–Severe Dementia: A Systematic Review
American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology
Swan, K., Hopper, M., et al. (2018).
American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 27(2), 836-852.
This systematic review examines the effect of direct and indirect treatments delivered by speech-language pathologists to improve the communication skills of individuals with moderate to severe dementia.
Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service (Australia)
2000-2017
Published studies (not further specified)
11
<div>Preliminary evidence suggest that group-based cognitive stimulation appears promising for improving the communication skills of individuals with late stage dementia.</div>
<div>One study examined an indirect treatment using communication partner training and reported improved engagement in conversation for individuals with moderate to severe dementia. However, no improvements were noted in mean words per topic or reduction in number of topics required by communication pattern to sustain conversation. Therefore further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of indirect treatments targeting caregiver training.</div>
<div>Ten studies examined the use of direct interventions which included cognitive stimulation (6 studies), cognitive training (2 studies) and cognitive rehabilitation (2 studies). Overall the studies reported positive evidence for direct treatment to improve the discourse and conversational skills of individuals with moderate to severe dementia. Maintenance was only reported in three studies; of which two reported some maintenance effects of reduction in frequency of verbalizations.Given the heterogeneity of the interventions and the outcomes measured, further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of specific interventions.</div>
