Behavioural symptoms in dementia: nature and treatment.

Cognitive deficits are the recognised symptoms of the dementias of later life. However, behavioural symptoms also contribute significantly to the problem and are often the main reason for a clinical consultation. The present study describes non - cognitive behavioural symptoms in 30 patients during various stages of dementia. Anxiety, depressive features, agitation, wandering and paranoid symptoms are the main features. The paper also discusses the usefulness and limitation of pharmacological treatment of these symptoms.