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THE TAILORED ACTIVITY PROGRAM FOR OUTPATIENTS (TAP‐O) TO REDUCE NEUROPSYCHIATRIC SYMPTOMS AND CAREGIVER BURDEN IN A BRAZILIAN SAMPLE OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DEMENTIA: PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF A RANDOMIZED TRIAL
Conference poster   Open access   Peer reviewed

THE TAILORED ACTIVITY PROGRAM FOR OUTPATIENTS (TAP‐O) TO REDUCE NEUROPSYCHIATRIC SYMPTOMS AND CAREGIVER BURDEN IN A BRAZILIAN SAMPLE OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DEMENTIA: PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF A RANDOMIZED TRIAL

Alexandra Martini de Oliveira, Marcia Radanovic, Patricia Cotting Homem de Mello, Patricia Cardoso Buchain, Adriana Dias Vizzotto, Florindo Stella, Catherine V. Piersol, Laura N. Gitlin and Orestes Vicente Forlenza
Alzheimer's & dementia, v 13(7S_Part_12), pp P608-P609
Jul 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jalz.2017.06.660
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jalz.2017.06.660View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open Maybe Open Access (Publisher Bronze)

Abstract

Background Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NS) such as agitation, physical aggression, shadowing and vocalizations are common in individuals with dementia compromising their quality of life and safety. NS have been associated with more time spent caregiving, high level of distress among caregivers and greater mortality among people with dementia. Although pharmacological interventions are frequently used to manage such symptoms, they can lead to adverse effects or even add to mortality. Some non-pharmacological approaches have been shown to be safe and to reduce NS. In the present investigation we describe a randomized clinical trial, using the Tailored Activity Program Outpatient version (TAP-O) in a Brazilian sample, to test the efficacy of an activity program to reduce NS in patients with dementia and their caregivers burden. TAP-O version was adapted from original TAP (home intervention). Methods Patients with dementia and their caregivers were randomized to intervention (TAP-O method) or control group (psychoeducative method). TAP-O is a method involving eight sessions in an outpatient service conducted by occupational therapists who train caregivers in using meaningful activities at home, as part of their daily care routines. Outcome measures were obtained by Neuropsychiatric Inventory – Clinician Rating Scale (NPI-C) and Zarit Scale to measure NS in patients and caregiver burden, respectively. Results A total of 21 dyads (individuals with dementia and their caregivers) were included. Most of patients were female (76.2%) with mean age of 78.7 (SD = 5.8), and most of caregivers were family members (71.4%). Eleven patients were randomized to experimental intervention (TAP-O) and ten to control group. Patients from experimental group presented significant decrease in symptoms of hallucination (p=0.008), anxiety (p=0.03), and sleep disorder (p=0.04) compared to the control group. Regarding the caregiver burden, measured by Zarit, it was possible to detect a statistically significant decrease in the experimental group (p=0.003). Conclusions These preliminary findings suggest that TAP-O may be clinically relevant, such as original TAP (home version) for the NS in patients with dementia and burden of their caregivers.

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