BACKGROUND Alzheimer’s disease(AD)is a common type of dementia due to neuronal impairment.In addition,psychobehavioral symptoms including severe sleep disorders,depression and anxiety can occur in most patients with ...BACKGROUND Alzheimer’s disease(AD)is a common type of dementia due to neuronal impairment.In addition,psychobehavioral symptoms including severe sleep disorders,depression and anxiety can occur in most patients with AD.CASE SUMMARY We report a case of a 68-year-old woman with a 2-year history of AD.She initially presented with memory loss,progressively more severe,leading to a depressive and anxious status.The clinical symptoms also included severe sleep disturbances.Considering the age and health state of the patient,a non-pharmacological treatment of bright light therapy was used to improve her sleep quality.The treatment was provided for 30 minutes twice a day,during 8:30 am to 9:00 am and 16:30 pm to 17:00 pm.After 4 weeks of therapy,the sleep quality notably improved,with a marked decrease in daytime sleep,increase in nighttime sleep,and disappearance of nocturnal activity.The depression and anxiety were also suppressed significantly.CONCLUSION This case report suggested that bright light therapy can have a positive effect on sleep quality in elderly patients with AD and can be used as an effective and safe non-pharmacological treatment.展开更多
文摘BACKGROUND Alzheimer’s disease(AD)is a common type of dementia due to neuronal impairment.In addition,psychobehavioral symptoms including severe sleep disorders,depression and anxiety can occur in most patients with AD.CASE SUMMARY We report a case of a 68-year-old woman with a 2-year history of AD.She initially presented with memory loss,progressively more severe,leading to a depressive and anxious status.The clinical symptoms also included severe sleep disturbances.Considering the age and health state of the patient,a non-pharmacological treatment of bright light therapy was used to improve her sleep quality.The treatment was provided for 30 minutes twice a day,during 8:30 am to 9:00 am and 16:30 pm to 17:00 pm.After 4 weeks of therapy,the sleep quality notably improved,with a marked decrease in daytime sleep,increase in nighttime sleep,and disappearance of nocturnal activity.The depression and anxiety were also suppressed significantly.CONCLUSION This case report suggested that bright light therapy can have a positive effect on sleep quality in elderly patients with AD and can be used as an effective and safe non-pharmacological treatment.
