168 Exploring Physical Activity and Sleep in Community-dwelling People with Dementia and their Association with Cognitive Function and Quality of Life.

Background The incidence of dementia has reached epidemic levels, both globally and here in Ireland. Many adults with dementia living in the community remain inactive with some also suffering from sleep disturbances. There is evidence to suggest sufficient exercise and sleep can have a positive influence on cognition also. In this study, we explore: physical activity levels sleep patterns, of community dwelling people with dementia and explore the association they have on: cognitive function quality of life. Methods Each individual was assigned a Withings-Go wrist-watch to wear over a period of 3 months which measured their: daily steps taken time in deep sleep time in light sleep. total sleep each night MMSE and DEM QoL were used to measure cognitive function and quality of life respectively. Assessed at: baseline & after 3 months. This data was coded and analysed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS. Results An RHO = 0.617 was detected between the DEMQoL scores and the mean steps taken over the last 5 days of data collection. An RHO = -0.127 was detected between steps and sleep time which implied that as steps increased, sleep time was reduced with the opposite being applicable also. The average total sleep time for the sample was 08:03:00 (hh:mm:ss) while the average daily steps taken by the group was 3,266 steps. Conclusion People with dementia living in the community were found to be physically inactive. This study has displayed that increased levels of physical activity can show signs of an improved self-perceived quality of life. This study was a correlational study and causality was not investigated. The association we have identified may provide support and foundation for future studies that explore causal components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]