SynthesisBMJ supportive & palliative care2026
What is the evidence for physical interventions for people living with advanced dementia in the community? A meta-review.
Synthesis in BMJ supportive & palliative care, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDementia is a major global cause of death, with cases projected to rise from 57.4 million in 2019 to 152.8 million by 2050. As the disease progresses, individuals experience growing frailty, complex health needs and multiple comorbidities, requiring comprehensive support to maintain quality of care. Non-pharmacological physical interventions, targeting either the physical body or immediate environment, may help address these needs, especially in advanced dementia nearing end of life.
aimTo map, appraise and synthesise evidence on the effectiveness of physical interventions for people with dementia nearing end of life.
designAn umbrella review of systematic reviews on physical interventions, part of a broader palliative dementia care series. DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE, Epistemonikos and ASSIA were searched for systematic reviews from 1980 to May 2024 involving people with dementia, carers or staff in health and social care settings. Physical interventions were defined as non-pharmacological approaches focusing on the body or physical environment.
resultsFrom 6052 records, 13 reviews met the inclusion criteria. Interventions grouped into two categories: (1) nutrition and hydration (including enteral feeding) and (2) physical activities (including exercise, massage and approaches to reduce care resistance). Evidence quality was generally low, with no conclusive findings on effectiveness. Most interventions addressed well-being and function, with limited evidence for carer support, holistic assessment or medical management.
conclusionResearch has primarily targeted well-being and functional outcomes, leaving key gaps in carer support and holistic management, warranting further investigation.
trial registrationPROSPERO CRD42020162887.
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Registered trials
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.