Paliatívna starostlivosť pri demencii // SOLEN

Paliatívna medicína a liečba bolesti 1-2e/2024

Palliative care in dementia

Dementia is a progressive process that significantly impacts patients, caregivers, and healthcare systems. Palliative care offers a patientcentred approach to managing the multifaceted challenges of advanced dementia, focusing on symptom relief, psychosocial support, and quality of life. Despite its proven benefits, barriers such as late referrals and limited understanding of palliative care hinder its integration into dementia care. Palliative care can manage pain, dyspnoea, infection and fever. It can help determine a patient‘s capacity, provide better communication, deprescribe unnecessary medication, help access spiritual care and reduce stress in caretakers. Future research should focus on evaluating interventions to optimize care delivery and address disparities in access across diverse populations.

Keywords: palliative care, dementia, end of life, communication, symptom management