title: Positive affect and sleep in spousal Alzheimer caregivers: a longitudinal study.
abstract: This article examines the longitudinal relation between positive affect (PA) and sleep in 126 spousal Alzheimer's disease caregivers. Caregivers underwent 4 yearly assessments for the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, the self-rated Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and actigraphy to objectify nighttime total sleep time, wake after sleep onset, and percentage of sleep. Increased levels of PA and a greater positivity (i.e., positive-to-negative affect) ratio were significantly associated with better subjective sleep over the entire study period. Yearly increases in PA-even when controlling for negative affect (NA)-and in the positivity ratio were also associated with better subjective sleep. PA and actigraphy measures showed no significant relations. Increased PA is longitudinally associated with better sleep in dementia caregivers largely independent of NA.
authors.affiliation: a Department of General Internal Medicine, Division of Psychosomatic Medicine Bern University Hospital and University of Bern , Bern , Switzerland.
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: von Känel
authors.forename: Brent T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Mausbach
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ancoli-Israel
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Mills
authors.forename: Joel E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Dimsdale
authors.forename: Thomas L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Patterson
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Grant
mesh_terms: D056044:Actigraphy; D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000451:nursing*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057187:Independent Living; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D057566:Self Report; D012890:Sleep; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology*