The Assessment of Quality of Life in Dementia

Abstract

In the past decade, pharmacological, behavioral, educational, and environmental interventions for individuals with dementia have addressed a variety of goals: improving cognitive status, delaying the onset of symptoms, reducing behavioral problems such as depression and agitation, and maximizing activities of daily living. It is important not only to ameliorate symptoms but also to evaluate the extent to which an intervention improves the quality of life (QOL) of the person being treated (Logsdon et al., 2002).