TY - JOUR
T1 - Light Treatment for Sleep Disorders
T2 - Consensus Report: V. Age-Related Disturbances
AU - Campbell, Scott S.
AU - Terman, Michael
AU - Lewy, Alfred J.
AU - Dijk, Derk Jan
AU - Eastman, Charmane I.
AU - Boulos, Ziad
PY - 1995/6
Y1 - 1995/6
N2 - Sleep maintenance insomnia is a major complaint among the elderly. As a result, an inordinate proportion of sleeping pill prescriptions go to individuals over 65 y of age. Because of the substantial problems associated with use of hypnotics in older populations, efforts have been made to develop nondrug treatments for age-related sleep disturbance, including timed exposure to bright light. Such bright light treatments are based on the assumption that age-related sleep disturbance is the consequence of alterations in the usual temporal relationship between body temperature and sleep. Although studies are limited, results strongly suggest that evening bright light exposure is beneficial in alleviating sleep maintenance insomnia in healthy elderly subjects. Less consistent, but generally positive, findings have been reported with regard to bright light treatment of sleep and behavioral disturbance in demented patients. For both groups, it is likely that homeostatic factors also contribute to sleep disturbance, and these may be less influenced by bright light interventions.
AB - Sleep maintenance insomnia is a major complaint among the elderly. As a result, an inordinate proportion of sleeping pill prescriptions go to individuals over 65 y of age. Because of the substantial problems associated with use of hypnotics in older populations, efforts have been made to develop nondrug treatments for age-related sleep disturbance, including timed exposure to bright light. Such bright light treatments are based on the assumption that age-related sleep disturbance is the consequence of alterations in the usual temporal relationship between body temperature and sleep. Although studies are limited, results strongly suggest that evening bright light exposure is beneficial in alleviating sleep maintenance insomnia in healthy elderly subjects. Less consistent, but generally positive, findings have been reported with regard to bright light treatment of sleep and behavioral disturbance in demented patients. For both groups, it is likely that homeostatic factors also contribute to sleep disturbance, and these may be less influenced by bright light interventions.
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U2 - 10.1177/074873049501000207
DO - 10.1177/074873049501000207
M3 - Article
C2 - 7632988
AN - SCOPUS:0029318456
SN - 0748-7304
VL - 10
SP - 151
EP - 154
JO - Journal of biological rhythms
JF - Journal of biological rhythms
IS - 2
ER -