Table 18: Summary of Systematic Reviews for Physical Activity in Seniors with Dementia^*.

Study/Year/Country	Type of Study	Objective	Outcomes	Results	Comment
Heyn et al. (53) 2004 United States	Meta-analysis (fixed effects)	To determine whether physical exercises are beneficial for people with dementia and related cognitive impairments	Physical fitness Physical functioning Cognition Behaviour	30 RCTs met inclusion criteria Mix of community dwelling and LTC residents. N=2,020 Results (Summary Effect Size and 95% CI) Fitness 0.69 (0.58–0.80) Cognitive 0.57 (0.38–0.75) Functional 0.59 (0.43–0.76) Behaviour 0.54 (0.36–0.72) Overall 0.62 (0.55–0.70)	Intervention delivered via occupational therapists Short-term studies Methodological issues (heterogeneity) Unclear whether patients maintained the intensity throughout or if additional devices were used to enhance motivation
Occupational Therapy Evidence-Based Practice Research Group, McMaster University (54) 1999 Canada Grey literature	Systematic review	To determine effectiveness of activity programs in improving occupational performance (i.e., participation in self-care, productivity, and leisure) and or performance components (physical, affective, and cognitive)	“Occupational performance(participation in daily activities)” This was based on: Performance component areas (physical/psychologi cal/cognitive) Environmental factors (family/caregiver perspectives)	4 RCTs met inclusion criteria; each had 4 different activity programs (planned walking, mental stimulation, physical activation, and purposeful activities). N=164; Mix of inpatients and outpatients Statistically significant results favoured the treatment group in all 4 studies. “They support the use of activity groups for older persons with dementia for improving their wellbeing, communication, mental status, and emotional state. Future research is needed in this area due to the small amount of evidence available.”	Intervention delivered via occupational therapists Activity outcomes “include some sort of activity which may be physical, social cognitive or psychological behavioural in nature” Heterogeneity

^*CI indicates confidence interval; LTC, long-term care; N, number; RCT, randomized controlled trial.