Drug-free care for dementia?

A non-drug dementia treatment tested in German nursing homes proved as effective as medications in halting progression of disease, a new study reveals.

This new program, dubbed the “MAKS intervention,” included motor stimulation activities (M);  activities of daily living (A); cognitive stimulation (K); and a “spiritual element,” which could include music. Residents received this therapy for two hours per day, six days a week.

Using the Erlanger’s Test of Daily Living scale, MAKS proved at least as effective as treatment with cholinesterase inhibitors, investigators said. The study was published in BMC Medicine.