Use of simple muscle relaxation techniques may help people with Alzheimer's disease control certain behavioral problems and improve their mental performance, which could decrease health care costs and caregiver stress and allow patients to remain at home instead of being moved to a long-term care facility, says Julie Suhr, OU assistant professor of psychology and lead author of the study.
"Studies suggest that behavioral problems are the reason many people become institutionalized," Suhr says. "It's not the memory problems. It's these other difficult-to-manage behaviors that make it hard for caregivers to keep their loved ones at home."
Most Alzheimer's patients take psychotropic medication for behavioral problems, but thes e drugs can have negative side effects ranging from drowsiness to increased conclusion.
Suhr studied two forms of relaxation training in 34 pairs of Alzheimer's patients and caregivers. The patients ranged in age from 65 to 80, were living at home, exhibited behavioral problems that affected daily functioning and had mild to moderate cognitive impairments.
Participants were assigned randomly to either a progressive muscle relaxation training group or a group that used an imagery techn ique to promote relaxation. With progressive muscle relaxation, patients were trained to tense and relax various groups of muscles. Using the imagery method, patients visualized a calm setting when they began to feel agitated or anxious.
Caregivers in both groups were trained to coach patients through the prescribied relaxation technique at the first sign of aggression on anxiety. Participants had an average of five treatment sessions with Suhr and practiced at home at least twice a d ay for six weeks.
After two months, both groups reported a decrease in anxiety symptoms, but only patients in the progressive muscle relaxation group reported fewer behavioral problems. Patients in this group also showed improvment on laboratory tests that measure memory, suggesting that relaxed patients may think more clearly.
