Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia Influencing Care Dependency of Older People with Dementia in Geriatric Residential Facilities in Japan

Background: This study aimed to clarify how cognitive function, activities of daily living (ADL), and behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) influence care dependency of older people with dementia in geriatric residential facilities. Methods: The participants were 376 older people diagnosed with dementia who were evaluated using ADL, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), and Japanese Care Dependency Scale (CDS-J) scores. Results: A multiple regression analysis with each subscale of the CDS-J as a dependent variable showed significant associations with the subscales of ADL, MMSE, and NPI. The language subscale of the MMSE was significantly positively associated with nine items from the 15 CDS-J subscales such as eating/ drinking and incontinence. Additionally, apathy scores on the NPI subscale were significantly negatively associated with almost all CDS-J subscales. Conclusion: These findings suggest that ADL, cognitive function, and BPSD such as apathy influence care dependence of older people with dementia. Previous research has shown that apathy can lead to deterioration of dementia. Healthcare providers should be encouraged to incorporate interest and intellectual stimulation into daily care in order to reduce apathy. Copyright (C) 2019, Taiwan Society of Geriatric Emergency & Critical Care Medicine.