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Emotional function in dementia patients
Author(s) -
Fujii Masahiko,
Butler James P.,
Sasaki Hidetada
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
psychogeriatrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.647
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1479-8301
pISSN - 1346-3500
DOI - 10.1111/psyg.12059
Subject(s) - dementia , empathy , cognition , sympathy , psychology , clinical psychology , function (biology) , psychiatry , medicine , disease , evolutionary biology , biology
Behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia, which can be considered as hyperreactivity of the emotional functioning of dementia, can be alleviated or aggravated by the behavioural and psychological symptoms of the caregiver. Comfortable stimulations of emotional function through sensory stimulations are effective methods for alleviating behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. Although cognitive function deteriorates with age, emotional function is often retained even in advanced years. Thus, it is recommended that care in patients with dementia be focused mainly on the stimulation of emotional function (e.g. sympathy and empathy, which are human traits), rather than relying solely on the stimulation of cognitive function.