UB Attracts those with a Penchant for Sleep (Research)

Understanding sleep disturbance and improving sleep quality in older adults living in long-term care (LTC) settings has been the focus of study for Junxin Li, PhD ’14 since she arrived at UB to pursue her PhD. Dr. Li states, “Sleep is important for health and well-being and this is no different for LTC residents. However, disturbed sleep is a common complaint in this group who frequently report experiences of excessive daytime sleepiness, difficulty falling asleep, increased duration and frequency of awakenings at night, and disrupted sleepwake rhythms.

Junxin Li conducted two sleep studies with LTC residents, a retrospective study to identify the most influential factors associated with daytime sleep in residents living in a nursing home setting and her dissertation study testing the effects of a person centered dementia care (PCDC) intervention on sleep in assisted living residents with dementia. The findings of the first study indicated that social engagement is key to decreasing the occurrence of daytime sleep in LTC residents, especially for those with  cognitive impairment. Her dissertation study used Actigraphy to measure sleep after providing meaningful physical and social activities and interactions as a mechanism to improve sleep. These strategies aimed to keep the residents from unintentionally falling asleep during the day allowing them to consolidate their nighttime sleep. The findings support that PCDC significantly increased participants’ minutes of nighttime sleep, increased daytime physical activity, and decreased the percentage of daytime spent napping.

During her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania she will look at how sleep changes over time with the progress of Alzheimer’s disease and explore effective sleep interventions for older adults in different stages of the disease.