How patients with mild dementia living in a nursing home benefit from dementia cafés: a case-control study focusing on psychological and behavioural symptoms and caregiver burden

Background: Dementia is a syndrome, mainly due to neurodegeneration, affecting cognition, behaviour, feelings and relationships. Pharmacological treatment is still challenging and thus different ways to improve/slow down the disease are necessary.

Methods: Twenty-five subjects with mild dementia, living in a nursing home, and their relatives were invited to attend a dementia cafe, a community group which provides support for families affected by dementia. Each patient was evaluated by a neuropsychologist, through the administration of a specific neuropsychological battery, before and at the end of the study. Their outcomes were compared to a matched group of patients with dementia receiving psycho-counselling.

Results: After the dementia cafe meetings, patients showed higher significant changes in mood (P < 0.01), behavioural symptoms (P < 0.001), quality of life (P < 0.001), and caregiver burden (P < 0.001). The control group significantly improved only in quality of life with a reduction of caregiver burden.

Conclusions: Our findings confirm that patients with dementia may benefit from the dementia cafe, especially concerning behavioural symptoms. Moreover, caregivers find these cafés to be welcoming, relaxed places to socialise and access support and information. Future dementia cafés should create programs and comfortable environments answering to the different needs of the patients.