Fewer than one-third of non-pharmacological treatments for Alzheimer's disease are backed by sufficient evidence, according to a report from nonprofit group UsAgainstAlzheimer's.
The advocacy group performed a systematic review of research backing various Alzheimer's management tools and solutions, many of them technology-based. Of the 314 studies reviewed, representing 55 types of treatments, approximately 30 percent scored a four or five on the ascending five-point Level of Evidence scale.
A multitude of factors led to lower scores: a lack of follow-up confirmation studies, ambiguity in the specification of interventions, small sample sizes, studies and trials based on outdated data and a lack of minority and female representation in research, among others.
"These issues require decisive action," the report's authors concluded. "In order to tackle [Alzheimer's disease] and discover groundbreaking therapies, future researchers and policymakers must identify a more standardized approach to recruitment, prioritize funding for the most promising pilot studies and aim to cultivate a pipeline that reflects the broad range of cutting-edge theories and approaches to attacking the disease."