Successful Behavioral Treatment for Reported Sleep Problems in Elderly Caregivers of Dementia Patients: A Controlled Study

Although sleep problems are common among dementia caregivers, there has been no research thus far describing treatment of such problems using behavioral techniques. In this study, 36 elderly dementia caregivers with disturbed sleep were randomly assigned to either a brief behavioral intervention or a wait list control. The active treatment consisted of standard sleep hygiene, stimulus control, and sleep compression strategies as well as education about community resources, stress management, and techniques to reduce patient disruptive behaviors. Caregivers in active treatment showed significant improvements in sleep at post-treatment and 3-month follow up. No significant differences between groups were observed for caregiver mood, burden, or patient behavior problems, suggesting that sleep improvements were not an artifact of depression treatment. Treatment responders tended to be younger and more compliant with treatment recommendations than non-responders. Results suggest that behavioral techniques may well be a viable alternative to medication for sleep problems in aging caregivers.