Multidisciplinary approaches to coping with neurodegenerative disorders amid COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, are the leading causes of dementia in the elderly. In the coming days, an alarming upsurge of dementia patients is expected with increasing life expectancy. This is the scenario not only in the developed world but also in the developing world, where older people live in vulnerable situations. Even in the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-19) pandemic, the situation has worsened. Due to the limitations of conventional therapeutic strategies, it is necessary to explore integrated approaches consisting of both pharmacological and non-pharmaceutical interventions. As existing anti-dementia drugs pose many adverse effects on patients, pharmacological intervention through naturally occurring agents should be employed to explore targeted therapy. Alongside, non-pharmacological interventions such as cognitive and motor rehabilitation, occupational therapy, and psychological therapy need to be explored. From this perspective, multidisciplinary approaches need to be employed in order to develop a sustainable patient-friendly treatment strategy for the management of these emerging health issues with tremendous social burdens.