There are nonpharmacological approaches to managing behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia and the difficulties associated with evaluating and implementing these approaches.
The physical exam aids differential diagnosis and is unlikely to be replaced by new technology. It is important in resource-poor settings and in the litigious U.S., and it fosters a trusting and therapeutic patient-doctor relationship.
Brain-computer interfaces raise many ethical questions. The brain is inviolate no more, and that implies a challenge for medical ethics as neuroscientists and surgeons attempt to restore and enhance brain function.