Mobile Phones and/or Smartphones and Their Use in the Management of Dementia - Findings from the Research Studies

摘要

Nowadays, there are significant changes in the number of elderly people all over the world. This accelerating trend in the rise of elderly inevitably results in serious economic and social changes accompanied with a number of aging diseases such as dementia. The aim of the review study is to examine the exploitation of mobile phones and/or smartphones and their benefits and limitations for patients with dementia. The methods of this review involve literature search of accessible studies dealing with the topic on the exploitation of mobile phones and/or smartphones in dementia found in three acknowledged databases Science Direct, Web of Science, and MEDLINE. Furthermore, the results of the detected studies were compared and evaluated. The results of this article show that the use of mobile phones and/or smartphones by patients with dementia can provide support for the activities of daily life. In addition, they can reduce both mental and economic burden of their caregivers and help doctors in their assessments and diagnoses. Nevertheless, more original research studies, especially in the area of the effectiveness of their use should be conducted. The same is true for sustainable support in the use of mobile phones by patients with dementia.