Tailored Light Treatment Improves Sleep and Behavior in Patients With Alzheimer's

Light treatment may help people with Alzheimer's and other related dementia, to improve sleep, depression and agitation.

The study presented by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, found that exposing people with Alzheimer's disease to light treatment tailored to enhance the circadian cycle improved total sleep quality, efficiency and duration. Apart from this, exposure to light treatment for four weeks also helped lower the rate of depression and agitation.

"It is a simple, inexpensive, non-pharmacological treatment to improve sleep and behavior in Alzheimer's disease and dementia patients," said principal investigator Mariana Figueiro, PhD. "The improvements we saw in agitation and depression were very impressive."

One of the most common forms of dementia among older adults is Alzheimer's. Nearly 5 million U.S. seniors suffer from Alzheimer's. The disease generally hits at the age of 60 and progresses with age. An estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease. This number has doubled since 1980, and is expected to be as high as 16 million by 2050, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The pilot study was conducted on 14 nursing home patients who were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia.  In each resident's room, a light source emitting low levels of 300-400 lux of bluish white light with a color temperature of over 9000K was fixed.

Exposure to light was during daytime for a certain number of hours and this took place for a period of four weeks. Using a calibrated instrument prior to and after the exposure to light, the researchers collected the light-dark and activity rest patterns. 

After this, the researchers used standardized questionnaires through which they measured the participant's quality of sleep, depression and agitation.

According to the researchers, improvement in the quality of sleep was linked with various other noticeable behavioral changes.

"Subjective reports by the nursing staff were that the patients were calmer, eating better and their overall behavior was more manageable," she said.

The finding was documented in the journal Sleep.