Severe dementia is a relatively neglected area of psychiatry that attracts considerably less attention than the earlier stages of the illness. However, later stages of dementia are as important, if not more so, as the earlier stages, since they harbour unique characteristics and events which profoundly affect the lives of patients and their carers. 

Severe Dementia addresses the special challenges faced by clinicians managing the late stage of this illness. After a brief introduction to diagnosis and the underlying pathology, a comprehensive section covers clinical features, such as behavioural disturbances and physical effects.  This is followed by the section on management, which addresses treatment options, both with drugs and non-pharmacologically, and health economics.  It also deals with ethical and nursing issues regarding caring for people in the terminal stages of illness, palliative care and the role of the family. 

Written and edited by an expert team of geriatric psychiatrists, Severe Dementia will be of value to all clinicians involved in the management of the complex and vulnerable group of patients.  It will also be of interest to general practitioners and carers in nursing homes.