Brief Report
Light Therapy for Seniors in Long Term Care

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Abstract

Objectives

To investigate the effects of light therapy on cognition, depression, sleep, and circadian rhythms in a general, nonselected population of seniors living in a long term care facility.

Design

A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Setting

The experiment took place at a long term care facility in Pennsylvania.

Participants

Study participants (15 treatment, 13 placebo) were residents receiving either personal care or skilled nursing care.

Intervention

Treatment consisted of approximately 400 lux of blue light administered for 30 minutes per day, Monday through Friday, for 4 weeks. The placebo was approximately 75 lux of red light generated from the same device.

Measurements

Behavioral assessments were made using the MicroCog Assessment of Cognitive Functioning, Geriatric Depression Scale, and Profile of Mood States. Daytime sleepiness was evaluated using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale.

Results

Three of the 4 composite scores from the MicroCog as well as the mean Tension/Anxiety score from the Profile of Mood States showed a significant treatment versus placebo effect.

Conclusion

Blue light treatment led to significant cognitive improvements compared with placebo red light and may be a promising environmental intervention to reduce cognitive symptoms in elderly, long-term care residents.

Section snippets

Participants

Participants were residents of a long term care facility in Pennsylvania. In contrast to previous work that focused on target groups with a diagnosed condition, all residents in the highest level of care were permitted to participate regardless of diagnosis and symptoms of mood, sleep, or cognitive disorders.

Participants were assigned to either the treatment (n = 15 at completion) or placebo (n = 13 at completion) group in an alternating fashion based on the order of response to the initial

Results

All measures were analyzed using a general linear mixed model analysis of variance, with significance threshold level of α = 0.05.

On three of the four composite index scores from the MicroCog (General Cognitive Functioning, General Cognitive Proficiency, and Information Processing Accuracy), the blue light treatment group showed significant improvement in comparison with the placebo group (Table 1). Although the general trend was for mean scores of both groups to improve from pre- to

Discussion

After 4 weeks of treatment with blue light, significant improvements in cognition were identified in elderly, long term care residents with multiple medical conditions and functional deficits. These gains occurred in the absence of any reported changes in daytime sleepiness, suggesting that cognitive benefits of light therapy are not necessarily linked to better rest and may be a direct result of light exposure. Similarly, the cognitive gains occurred without significant improvements in

Conclusion

Light therapy using short-wavelength optical radiation, commonly referred to as blue light—30 minutes at 400 lux at the eye, circadian stimulus of 1.714, in the morning, 5 days per week over 4 weeks—significantly improved cognitive function compared with placebo red light. Further investigations of the functional benefits and longevity of the therapeutic effects are needed. No significant changes were detected in reports of daytime sleepiness or depression inventory parameters.

Participants in

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the contributions of Dr Robert Bonneau, Dr Alexandros Vgontzas, and Dr Edward Bixler of the Hershey Medical Center, as well as Dr Vicki Gillmore, Dr J. Ken Brubaker, and the staff at Masonic Villages.

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This project was funded by the Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute at Penn State University.

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