Effects of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy on Patients With Dementia: An Umbrella Review of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses
Experimental Gerontology
Cao, Y., Wang, N., et al. (2023).
Experimental Gerontology, 177, 112197.
This umbrella systematic review of systematic reviews investigates the effects of cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) for individuals with dementia. Specific details about the included articles are available elsewhere in the Evidence Maps. See the Associated Article(s) section below.
No funding received
This umbrella systematic review contains a number of reviews, only some of which are related to SLP practice. For the full list of studies included in this umbrella review see Table 2 of the <a title="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2023.112197" href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2023.112197" target="_blank" rel="noopener">article</a>.
From database inception to December 2022
Systematic reviews and meta-analyses
14
<div>The following findings were noted regarding the impact of cognitive stimulation therapy for patients with dementia:</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Cognitive Outcomes: </strong>Thirteen studies reported 15 effect sizes ranging from 0.11 to 1.89. Twelve of 15 effects showed statistically significant increases in cognition with CST, while three found no change.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Depression/Depressive Symptoms</strong>: Eleven studies reported effect sizes ranging from -2.1 to 0.56. Eight of 11 showed no effect, and 3 showed a significant decrease in depression or depressive symptoms.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Quality of Life</strong>: Nine studies reported 11 efect sizes ranging from 0.11 to 3.12. Seven showed significant positive results for quality of life and 4 showed null results.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Behavior: </strong>Nine studies reported effect sizes ranging from -2.14 to 0.28. Six effects showed no change, and 3 showed a significant decrease in behavioral symptoms.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Language and Communication: </strong> Three studies reported effect sizes ranging from -0.51 to 0.44. Two showed significant positive increases, and one showed no effect.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Anxiety</strong>: Two studies reported effect sizes ranging from 0.25 to 0.5, with neither demonstrating significant change. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>Memory</strong>: One study reported a significant positive improvement with an effect size of 0.34. </span></li>
</ul>
