Evidence map›Paper›PMID 21391936›Full record

SynthesisJournal of the American Geriatrics Society2011

Oral feeding options for people with dementia: a systematic review.

Laura C Hanson, Mary Ersek, Robin Gilliam, Timothy S Carey

Open access · greenAbstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
36citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
7.5field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

36 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 117 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Megestrol acetate for treatment of anorexia-cachexia syndrome.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2013
    Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Trial
  6. Cost-Effectiveness of Nutrition Intervention in Long-Term Care.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2015
    Trial
  7. Trial
  8. Trial
  9. Trial
  10. Trial
  11. Article
  12. Feeding Difficulties and Survival Outcomes in Advanced Dementia:Sultan Qaboos University medical journal · 2025
    Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Eating Problems in Advanced Dementia: Navigating Difficult Conversations.MedEdPORTAL : the journal of teaching and learning resources · 2020
    Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Laura C HansonDivision of Geriatric Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA. lhanson@med.unc.edu
Mary Ersek
Robin Gilliam
Timothy S Carey
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · US

Funding

Improving Decision-Making about Feeding Options for Dementia PatientsR01NR009826 · NINR · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · PI HANSON, LAURA C · 2006 to 2009
$1.6M
NINR NIH HHS R01 NR009826NINR NIH HHS R01 NR009826-01A1
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

unlabelledTo review the benefits of oral feeding options in people with dementia.

designSystematic literature search with review of potentially eligible studies by two independent investigators.

settingPubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, CINAHL, and PsychINFO literature indices between January 1990 and October 2009.

participantsClinical trials with random or nonrandom control groups were included if they reported on clinical outcomes of oral feeding interventions for people with dementia. MEASUREMENTS: Investigators abstracted data from included studies using a structured instrument. Studies were graded on quality and potential bias, and overall strength of evidence was summarized.

resultsThirteen controlled trials provided data on use of supplements for people with dementia, and 12 controlled trials tested assisted feeding or other interventions. Studies provide moderate-strength evidence for high-calorie supplements, and low-strength evidence for appetite stimulants, assisted feeding, and modified foods to promote weight gain in people with dementia. The few studies measuring function or survival showed no difference.

conclusionHigh-calorie supplements and other oral feeding options can help people with dementia with feeding problems to gain weight; they are unlikely to improve other outcomes. These treatments can be offered alone or in combination as an alternative to tube feeding.

Indexed as

Clinical Trials as TopicDementiaEnteral NutritionHumans

Identifiers

PMID21391936
PMCPMC3164780
OpenAlexW1951350485

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.