Sleep in the elderly: normal variations and common sleep disorders.
The most common complaints of older adults concern their difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, which results in insufficient sleep and an increased risk of falls, difficulty with concentration and memory, and overall decreased quality of life. Difficulties sleeping are not, however, an inevitable part of aging. Rather, the sleep complaints are often comorbid with medical and psychiatric illness, associated with the medications used to treat those illnesses, or the result of circadian rhythm changes or other sleep disorders. Health care professionals specializing in geriatrics need to learn to recognize the different causes of sleep disturbances in this population and to initiate appropriate treatment. Nonpharmacological treatment techniques are discussed; pharmacological treatments are discussed in a companion article.
Ancoli-Israel
Sonia
S
Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, USA. sancoliisrael@ucsd.edu
Ayalon
Liat
L
Salzman
Carl
C
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control; D000368:Aged; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D017286:Polysomnography; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012307:Risk Factors; D007319:Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology
D011619:Psychotropic Drugs