Efficacy of aroma therapy for dementia

[Background] Dementia is characterized by progressive loss of memory and cognitive function, various behavioral and neuropsychiatric disturbances. It is one of the most important care problems in the aging populations. The olfactory limbic system is associated with emotion and memory function. Current pharmacological approaches for dementia are merely palliative. It is increasingly recognized that non-pharmacological options should be pursued. [Objective] The aims are to review systematically English literature on aromatherapy for dementia up to July 2010 and to make clear the e‹cacy of aromatherapy for dementia. [Design] A randomized control trial regarding aromatherapy for dementia. [Method] The English language literature up to July 2010 were searched by the databases PubMed and ALOIS, and bibliographies. The search terms: aromatherapy, complementary therapy, alternative therapy, essential oil, and dementia were used. The inclusion criteria were existence of informed consent, mention of details of randomized technique, detailed transition of the number of dropouts, ( ) ＋/－