Mild Cognitive Impairment, la sfida da affrontare. Interventi cognitivi e riabilitativi per migliorare il funzionamento cognitivo

Increases in life expectancy have been followed by an upsurge of age-associated changes and pathologies. This brings important challenges to society. A central issue concerns the growth of the incidence of age-associated cognitive decline. As people grow older, the structural and functional changes that occur in their brain lead to an overall deterioration of cognitive functioning, potentially compromising quality of life and social interaction. There has been an upsurge of attention in exploring non-pharmacological strategies to prevent or delay the impact of mild cognitive impairment. The paper aims to discuss different interventions approaches particularly cognitive training or rehabilitation interventions evaluating their effects to improve cognitive function among individuals with MCI. Several interventions proposed and implemented to slow or reverse these cognitive impairments show promise, but future studies should consider also how overcome barriers to the prompt diagnosis of MCI in individuals and physician’s perceptions in order to successfully promote healthy aging and prevent or slow down age-associated cognitive decline.