People who have dementia caused by Lewy body disease, such as Parkinsons' disease (PD) or dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are often sleepy by day but have very restless and disturbed nights. They can suffer from confusion, nightmares and hallucinations.
Daytime sleepiness in dementia with Lewy bodies is associated with neuronal depletion of the nucleus basalis of Meynert. Parkinsonism Relat Disord.
Lewy body dementia and sleep
Sleep-related disorders seen in people with LBD may include: REM sleep behavior disorder. Excessive daytime sleepiness (sleeping two or more hours during the day)
People with dementia, especially those in the later stages, can often spend a lot of time sleeping. This can sometimes be worrying for caregivers, friends and family.
Excessive daytime sleepiness is a commonly reported problem in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).
Sleeping more and more is a common feature of later-stage dementia. As the disease progresses, the damage to a person's brain becomes more extensive and they gradually become weaker and frailer over time.
Unlike Alzheimer's disease, which tends to progress gradually, this disease often starts rapidly, with a fast decline in the first few months. Later, there may be some leveling off but Lewy body dementia typically progresses faster than Alzheimer's.
In the later stages of Lewy body dementia, extreme muscle rigidity and sensitivity to touch develop. 3 People need assistance with almost all activities of daily living. Speech is often very difficult and may be whispered. Some people stop talking altogether.
People living with Alzheimer's and other dementia may have problems sleeping or experience increased confusion, anxiety, agitation, pacing and disorientation beginning at dusk and continuing throughout the night (referred to as sundowning).
One of the most common causes of death for people with dementia is pneumonia caused by an infection. A person in the later stages of dementia may have symptoms that suggest that they are close to death, but can sometimes live with these symptoms for many months.
People with dementia have up to eight times the odds of being in a car accident compared with other seniors. But in the early stages of the condition, people with a dementia diagnosis can often drive safely, the study team writes in the Journal of The American Geriatrics Society.
Hallucinations — seeing things that aren't there — might be one of the first symptoms, and they often recur. People with Lewy body dementia might hallucinate shapes, animals or people. Sound (auditory), smell (olfactory) or touch (tactile) hallucinations are possible. Movement disorders.
Lewy body dementia (LBD) symptoms may resemble those of other neurological disorders, like Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Symptoms fluctuate over time and vary from person to person.
The life expectancy of individuals with dementia with Lewy bodies varies; people typically survive about 5 to 7 years after they are diagnosed. REM sleep behavior disorder may be the first sign of dementia with Lewy bodies. It can occur years before other symptoms appear.
increasing confusion or poor judgment. greater memory loss, including a loss of events in the more distant past. needing assistance with tasks, such as getting dressed, bathing, and grooming. significant personality and behavior changes, often caused by agitation and unfounded suspicion.
People with dementia often have issues with sleep with their memory seemingly worse after a bad night. However, the evidence is unclear on whether poor sleep is a risk factor for dementia.
other long-term health problems – dementia tends to progress more quickly if the person is living with other conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes or high blood pressure, particularly if these are not well-managed.
Many, if not most, people with Lewy Body Dementia have Parkinsonism mobility issues. Pain, of an often inexplicable source is very common, and has often been believed to be related to lack of mobility from the condition.
Signs of the final stages of dementia include some of the following: Being unable to move around on one's own. Being unable to speak or make oneself understood. Eating problems such as difficulty swallowing.
Remission to near-normal cognitive function can occur spontaneously in the absence of clear environmental triggers suggesting that fluctuating cognition in Lewy body dementia is internally driven and that dynamic changes in brain activity play a role in its aetiology (Ballard et al., 2001; Sourty et al., 2016).
LBD is frequently misdiagnosed as Alzheimer's disease, especially in the early stage. Over time, changes in movement, hallucinations, or RBD can help distinguish LBD from Alzheimer's disease. Lewy body dementia (LBD) is an umbrella term for a form of dementia that has three common presentations.
Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors, such as donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl), may help improve hallucinations, confusion and sleepiness in some people.
Generally, a senior with dementia should go into a care home if you're struggling to meet their needs and your mental and physical health as a caregiver are at risk. Importantly, the safety of your loved one should be a key factor in deciding whether it's time for memory care.