Pharmacological management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia: Brief review

Abstract

Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are the main reason for medical attention in dementia patients. Most of the time caregivers get attentive toward dementia only after BPSD. The patient's quality of life is dependent on severity and burden of psychological symptoms. Most common BPSD manifestations are agitation/aggression, depression, psychosis, and social disinhibition. We are presenting the current biological understanding and brief review of pharmacological treatment of BPSD. The current review is based on PUBMED search with the following key words “Neuro-cognitive Disorders” AND “BPSD” AND “Pharmacological Treatment,” “Antipsychotics,” “Antidepressants,” “Mood Stabilizers,” “Benzodiazepines,” “Cognitive Enhancer,” “Antihypertensive.” We have selected all reviews, systemic reviews, meta-analysis, and randomized trials on pharmacotherapy in BPSD from 2002 to 2021. Brief review on BPSD will help to fill the knowledge gap of clinical decision on pharmacotherapy in BPSD patients. It is not a systemic review but only brief view point or commentary/summary on evidence-based pharmacotherapy in BPSD.

Keywords

• agitation in dementia
• dementia with behavior disorder
• drugs in dementia