Use of a Diary to Assess and Monitor Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia

The goal of this randomized clinical trial is to compare the efficacy of the use of a diary to record behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) in persons with dementia. The main questions it aims to answer are:

• Does the use of a diary lead to a reduction of the caregiver's burden at 3 months, compared with standard care?
• Does the use of a diary lead to a reduction of the neuropsychiatric inventory (NPI) score at 3 months, compared with standard care?
• Does the use of a diary result in less psychotropic drugs prescribed to the patient at 3 months compared with standard care?
• Are physicians and caregivers satisfied with managing patients with the use of a diary?
• Does the use of a diary reduce the caregiver's stress related to BPSD at 3 months, compared with standard care? Participants will be randomly assigned to either the use of a diary or a control group. Caregivers in the diary arm will be asked to fill in a diary with BPSD including triggers, severity, day and hour, to be analyzed by physicians to prescribe appropriate pharmacological or non-pharmacological interventions. The control group will receive usual care (i.e., appropriate interventions will be applied after interviewing the caregiver and/or visiting the patient).