Rest-Activity Disturbances Correlate with Core Features in Dementia with Lewy Bodies.
Jack Anderson1,2, Nicholas K H Chiu1,3,4, Jonathon E Pye5
1Faculty of Medicine and Health, Central Clinical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Movement Disorders Clinical Practice
|March 25, 2025
Summary
Home-based actigraphy reveals significant sleep-wake disturbances in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), differing from Parkinson's disease (PD). These rest-activity rhythm disruptions correlate with core DLB symptoms like hallucinations and cognitive fluctuations.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Sleep Medicine
- Chronobiology
Background:
- Sleep-wake disturbances are common yet understudied in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).
- In-laboratory polysomnography is challenging for DLB patients.
- Home-based actigraphy offers a feasible alternative for studying sleep patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare rest-activity rhythms in DLB, Parkinson's disease (PD), and controls using wrist actigraphy.
- To investigate the relationship between rest-activity rhythms and core clinical DLB features.
Main Methods:
- 11 DLB patients, 12 PD patients, and 11 age-matched controls participated.
- 14-day home-based wrist actigraphy was employed.
- Nonparametric statistical methods were used for data analysis.
Main Results:
- DLB patients exhibited more fragmented rest-activity rhythms and lower circadian amplitude compared to controls and PD patients.
- Rest-activity rhythm instability in DLB correlated with hallucinations and cognitive fluctuations.
- Reduced daytime activity in DLB was linked to motor parkinsonism severity.
Conclusions:
- Actigraphy effectively identifies distinct rest-activity rhythm disruptions in DLB, differentiating it from PD.
- These objective measures of rhythm disruption are associated with the severity of key clinical symptoms in DLB.
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