Pilot Study to Examine Health Effects of Daylight Exposure on Dementia Patients

University of Southern California83 enrolled

Overview

This study is designed to test the hypothesis that an intervention increasing exposure to daylight indoors will reduce depression and other neuropsychiatric symptoms among people living with dementia in long term care facilities.

Exposure to sufficient daylight indoors is a novel and potentially effective nonpharmacological treatment option for reducing depression and other neuropsychiatric symptoms for people living with dementia in long term care facilities. However, there are currently no minimum requirements for daylight access in care facilities. In urban settings, it is common for residents to spend the majority of the day indoors, illuminated by electrical light sources that deliver light with significantly lower intensities and reduced spectrum compared with daylight. A 12-week pilot study was conducted in 8 dementia care facilities involving (n = 83) participants addressing the hypothesis that an intervention increasing indoor exposure to daylight will reduce depression and other neuropsychiatric symptoms. At 4 facilities, staff was enlisted to increase daylight exposure by taking participants to a perimeter room with daylight exposure for socialization in the morning (8:00 - 10:00 AM) each day. At the other 4 facilities, a control group were taken to a similar sized area without daylight for socialization under typical electrical lighting conditions. Outcome measures for depression and other neuropsychiatric symptoms were taken at the beginning and end of the 12-week study.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

Conditions

Dementia Depression Behavior Disorders

Interventions

Daylight InterventionOTHER

Staff increased the daylight exposure of participants by taking them to the perimeter zone of a daylit room from 8:00 to 10:00 AM for socialization over a period of 12 weeks. The perimeter zone was defined to be the region of the room within 3 meters from windows. The intervention was administered each day (7 days / week) over the duration of the study.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Residents were recruited according to the trial inclusion criteria: 1) Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) diagnosis, 2) no physical co-morbidities that precluded participation in the daily group intervention, and 3) a Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) score of 10 or higher Exclusion Criteria: * physical co-morbidities that precluded participation in the daily group intervention

Locations (8)

Alhambra Dementia Care

Alhambra, California, United States

Sierra Vista Memory Care Community

Azusa, California, United States

Calabasas Memory Care Community

Calabasas, California, United States

Costa Mesa Dementia Care

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD)

The Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) was used to measure depression. The CSDD is designed for the assessment of depression in older people with dementia who can at least communicate basic needs. The CSDD scale ranges from 0 to 38, with higher scores indicating higher levels of depression. Scores above 10 indicate a probable major depression. Scores above 18 indicate a definite major depression. Scores below 6 are associated with absence of significant depressive symptoms.

Time frame: A CSDD score was taken at the beginning of the 12-week study and once again at the end of the 12-week study.

Secondary Outcomes

Change in Neuropsychiatric Inventory Nursing Home Version (NPI-NH)

The Neuropsychiatric Inventory Nursing Home Version (NPI-NH) was used to measure neuropsychiatric symptomatology. The NPI-NH is a scale designed for assessment of people with dementia residing in extended care facilities. The NPI-NH includes ten behavioral areas (delusions, hallucinations, agitation/aggression, depression/dysphoria, anxiety, elation/euphoria, apathy/indifference, disinhibition, irritability/lability, aberrant motor behavior) and two types of neurovegetative changes (sleep and nighttime behavior disorders, appetite and eating disorders). Each of the 12 areas is scored on a subscale ranging from 0-12, where higher scores indicate greater neuropsychiatric symptomatology. A summary score is obtained from summing all 12 subscale scores. The summary score ranges from 0 - 144, where higher scores indicate greater neuropsychiatric symptomatology.

Time frame: A NPI-NH score was taken at the beginning of the 12-week study and once again at the end of the 12-week study.

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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