Marc E. Agronin, MD

How can psychiatrists help caregivers deal with behavioral disturbances at home, without the possibility of having an in-person doctor’s appointment? Marc E. Agronin, MD, offers tips for helping patients in this special population, as well as their caregivers, during and after the pandemic.

Dr Agronin is a geriatric psychiatrist and Senior Vice President for Behavioral Health and the Chief Medical Officer for MIND Institute at Miami Jewish Health.

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How can psychiatrists help caregivers deal with behavioral disturbances at home, without the possibility of an in-person doctor’s appointment? In this video, Marc E. Agronin, MD, offers tips for helping patients with Alzheimer disease and other dementias.

Caring for Patients With Neurocognitive Disorders During the Pandemic

During this unprecedented time, many individuals with Alzheimer disease (AD) are homebound with their caregivers. How can clinicians help caregivers deal with common dilemmas under stay-at-home orders? We spoke with Marc Agronin, MD, a geriatric psychiatrist and Senior Vice President for Behavioral Health and the Chief Medical Officer for 

Psychiatric Times: How can clinicians advise caregivers to help them and their loved ones get through this time?

In one word-routine. Remind caregivers it is important to have a set routine each day that is predictable, stimulating, and involves regular exercise, fresh air and sunlight, whether in one’s yard, on a balcony or within a safe perimeter around the home. They should have a set time to wake up, have meals, listen to music, play games, and have social contact with others, either by phone, video chat, or at a safe social distance.

Everyone in the home should get dressed each morning in daily clothes and attend to one’s hygiene as if it is a regular day. They should make certain to get adequate hydration and healthy meals with fruits and vegetables and enforce a regular bedtime. It is also important to avoid excess time watching the news.

Psychiatric Times: How can psychiatrists help caregivers deal with behavioral disturbances at home, without the possibility of having an in-person doctor’s appointment?

This is a challenge. When any behavioral disturbances occur, query the caregiver to generate several ideas on what may be the underlying causes: Boredom? Anxiety from watching news about the pandemic on TV? Lack of physical or social stimulation? Underlying pain or discomfort? Discordant interactions with other people in the home? Having some idea of what may be triggering the behaviors can provide immediate solutions.

Caregivers should be counseled to provide a set daily routine as described in the first question. They should be advised to reach out to their internist if they suspect a physical cause, and to you or your office (perhaps with a telehealth option) if they have 

 or questions about behavioral changes or psychotropic medications. There are simple de-escalation strategies (eg, deep breathing, distractions) and PRN medication options that can be provided. Finally, help them to feel calm, engaged with the affected person, and hopeful that things will improve.

Psychiatric Times: What approaches can help to relieve anxiety among caregivers and individuals with neurocognitive impairment?

Anxiety is a common problem during the pandemic, with people worrying about getting ill, obtaining necessary goods, losing income, or being isolated from other people and activities. Anxiety may present in many ways in someone with cognitive impairment, including mood changes (nervousness, sadness, irritability), sleep and appetite disturbances, physical symptoms (eg, headache, indigestion, muscle aches, or even minor shortness of breath or chest pressure that they misinterpret as coronavirus symptoms) and social isolation. It is important to recognize these symptoms as anxiety and rule out anything more serious. Providing the opportunity for people to describe how they are feeling and vent about their concerns will help, and this can be done over the phone or on a video chat.

Educate caregivers about several simple approaches to relieve anxiety in themselves and the cognitively impaired person, including deep breathing/relaxation techniques, stretching and exercise, fresh air and sunlight, and fun and stimulating activities to distract one’s mind. Some individuals may have more serious symptoms of anxiety or even panic, and will need pharmacologic intervention, especially if there is a history of anxiety or mood disorders or psychosis. Tailor the medication to the symptoms using established regimens, being careful to avoid side effects that can be more difficult to manage over the phone.

Psychiatric Times: What should you say to participants in a research study which has been suspended?

Nearly every study for AD in the country has had to be either suspended or delayed because of stay-at-home orders, closed sites, or the inadvisability of conducting in-person visits. It may be months before study procedures can be up and running again. This is unfortunate, but necessary, and will require significant alterations in study procedures.

is aware of these gaps and have provided guidance to study sponsors. If you are a principal investigator, you will have already been informed by each study sponsor about its status and what to communicate with subjects. If you have a patient who is in a study, encourage them to stay in touch with the study coordinator and/or principal investigator to find out what to do about study medications, and whether any study procedures can be conducted by phone or video.

What should you advise caregivers for individuals with neurocognitive impairment who have difficulty understanding and cooperating with social distancing?

First of all, it is important to remind all caregivers to follow stay-at-home orders and not make any trips to stores or anywhere else with someone who does not understand or follow the rules of social distancing, as that will put them and others at an unacceptable risk of exposure to the 

. A cognitively impaired patient who resists wearing a mask properly or approaches others too closely may cause unpleasant social interactions.

This issue will become even more important when rules are relaxed but most people will be out in public wearing masks and still social distancing from one another. If the 

 person cannot understand or follow the rules, you will need to counsel the caregiver to keep them at home. If the person can understand the rules, you can advise the caregiver to remind them before and during each outing and provide them with a comfortable facemask that will not cause them to unnecessarily touch their face to adjust it.

During this time, many individuals with Alzheimer disease are homebound with their caregivers. Here's how clinicians can help caregivers deal with common dilemmas under stay-at-home orders.

Alzheimer Disease and COVID-19

is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but he was actually Dr Arthur Conan Doyle before he became a writer. He used the medical approach at the time-and that was to be a good detective. This is the type of model we need to think about when we are working with patients who have an underlying major neurocognitive order such as Alzheimer disease with associated agitation. You have to be a good 

 to look at all the different potential causes, so I would like to focus specifically on what causes agitation and few tips on how you can get at that.

Keep in mind that by virtue of the fact that someone is suffering from a neurocognitive disorder, they have a brain that is which is damaged. If you look at it on the level of neurocircuitry, a person’s ability to regulate their affect is impaired, their executive function is impaired, and so this in of itself is sufficient to explain why a lot of people end up having exaggerated or inappropriate or disorganized responses to stress given those changes. In addition, we see that some of the key brain nuclei that are involved in the regulation of cognition or mood or behavior such as the serotonergic and dopaminergic systems are also impaired. Again, this also provides a setting for why we see agitated behaviors.

Clinicians look for several different categories of 

. One would certainly be medical factors, some either acute or underlying disease state that is impairing brain function. One of the most common causes would be infection, and related to that, delirium. We also look for psychiatric illness. There might be an underlying depression; there could be anxiety, panic attacks, and psychosis which are driving the agitation. We have to look at different psychological factors. Someone may be feeling very stressed out in their environment. There might be an unmet need: are they hungry, thirsty, over-stimulated?

It may be that the caregiver is not competent or is overwhelmed or burned out and so they are not providing the right amount of care or the care they are providing is stimulating agitation in the patient. Finally, we have to look at medication-related issues. Certainly, many different medications (ie, narcotics, steroids), as well as sedating medications (which we think might be helping to treat pain or even relax the person), can actually worsen brain function and could also be associated with agitation.

Dr Agronin is a geriatric psychiatrist and currently serves as the Senior Vice President for Behavioral Health and the Chief Medical office at MIND Institute at Miami Jewish Health in Miami, FL. He is the author of 

The Dementia Caregiver: A Guide to Caring for Someone with Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Neurocognitive Disorders

In this video, Marc E. Agronin, MD, discusses several factors that may play a role in agitation. One would be underlying medical causes. It could be an acute disease state impairing brain function. And the list goes on.

Detecting Agitation in Patients With Dementia and Alzheimer Disease

Every clinician who works with individuals who have dementia-what we now refer to as major neurocognitive disorders-encounters states of agitation that can worsen function, pose safety concerns, and increase caregiver stress. It can be both confusing and frustrating to understand and manage these behaviors, but there are several approaches that can make all the difference.

 by the International Psychogeriatric Association as involving excessive motor activity or verbal or physical aggression that causes emotional distress and excess disability for the affected person, and impairs relationships, social functioning, and activities of daily living.

 These behaviors are commonly part of a larger 

 of behavioral and psychological symptoms that are associated with all major forms of dementia, including mania, depression, anxiety, apathy, and psychosis.

Agitation has many medical, medication-related, psychiatric, psychological, and environmental causes-but underlying all of them is a damaged and vulnerable brain that is less able to properly regulate affect and respond to challenges in an organized manner. Specifically, agitation has been associated with damage to key brain nuclei that 

A thorough medical and psychiatric evaluation as well as a review of the circumstances before, during, and after periods of agitation may reveal both enduring causes, such as an underlying depression or the use of a stimulating medication, and transient triggers such as boredom, hunger, or a noxious stimulus in the environment. The DICE algorithm developed by 

 is an excellent tool for clinicians as it guides them to describe the behaviors in detail, investigate potential causes, create a team approach to implement various treatments, and then to evaluate the relative success of the interventions.

Management of agitation involve three basic approaches. The first is to identify and address potential causes. The second is to implement behavioral approaches, ranging from increased therapeutic activities (eg, art or music therapy), to redirecting and refocusing the person to more positive activities, especially ones that meet the basic function of the agitation in the first place. The third approach involves the use of psychotropic medications that are targeted towards underlying factors such as anxiety or psychosis, or primarily aimed at reducing agitation by calming brain activity. Benzodiazepines and trazodone are often used emergently but can cause sedation and increase the risk of falling. Antidepressants are being studied since their modulation of serotonergic activity is aimed at reducing impulsivity and aggression. Anticonvulsants have been used to inhibit brain activity causing agitation, but with limited scientific support.

Antipsychotic medications have been widely studied, and while there is a fair amount of 

 suggesting modest benefit for agitation, there are also significant safety concerns, including the black box warnings for an increased risk of death.

 With any pharmacologic approach, the goal is to use the least amount of medication for the shortest time possible. Finally, clinicians need to be aware of the many regulations concerning the use of psychotropic medications in long-term care settings, including guidelines from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) of 1987 guidelines, American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria, and definitions of unnecessary drug use.

The best outcome will always stem from a systematic approach that seeks to understand and address the underlying causes and triggers of agitation, and then implements and evaluates both behavioral and pharmacologic approaches, with a clear eye on safety.

This article was originally posted on 10/8/19 and has since been updated.

. Dr Agronin was a speaker at the 2019 Psych Congress in San Diego, CA, he presented “Behavioral and Pharmacologic Approaches to Agitation and Dementia Associated with Major Neurocognitive Disorders.”

The author reports no disclosures concerning the subject matter of this article.

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Agitation in Cognitive Disorders. International Psychogeriatric Association provisional consensus clinical and research definition

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Neuropsychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's disease

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The relationship between psychiatric symptoms and regional cortical metabolism in Alzheimer's disease

Central serotonergic hyperresponsivity in late-onset Alzheimer's disease

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6. Tampi RR, Tampi DJ, Balachandran S, Srinivasan S. 

Antipsychotic use in dementia: a systematic review of benefits and risks from meta-analyses

Agitation can worsen function, pose safety concerns, and increase caregiver stress. It can be both confusing and frustrating to understand and manage these behaviors, but there are several approaches that can make all the difference.

Understanding and Managing Agitation Associated with Dementia

Dr Marc Agronin explains how determining the causes of 

seen in dementia requires good detective work. The stage is set given the brain damage associated with dementia which impairs affective regulation and executive function, and degrades cholinergic, serotonergic, and dopaminergic pathways.

These changes are enough to cause agitation-but frequently additional medical, psychiatric, psychological, medication-related, or environmental factors actually trigger or exacerbate behavioral disturbances.

A deeper understanding of agitated behaviors can be derived from looking at their context and the function they serve. Applied behavior analysis 

that disruptive behaviors serve one or more of these five basic functions:

It can take time and multiple interviews to understand the functions but knowing them can guide behavioral treatments.

Dr Agronin is a geriatric psychiatrist and currently serves as the Senior Vice President for Behavioral Health and the Chief Medical office at MIND Institute at Miami Jewish Health in Miami, FL. Dr Agronin was a speaker at the 2019 Psych Congress in San Diego, CA, in a presentation titled “Behavioral and pharmacologic approaches to agitation and dementia associated with major neurocognitive disorders.”

Brain damage associated with dementia impairs affective regulation and executive function, and degrades cholinergic, serotonergic, and dopaminergic pathways. Dr Marc Agronin explains.

The Detective Work Needed to Understand the Causes of Agitation Seen in Dementia

We tend to have a dichotomous view of aging. Aging can be great, we imagine, but only if we maintain good physical and mental health into our later years. On the other hand, we imagine aging to be a horror if dementia or some other painful and debilitating condition develops.

These dueling perspectives reflect the reality of aging today: the average life expectancy has increased into the high 70s, while at the same time rates of dementia continue to rise, making Alzheimer disease (AD) the sixth largest killer. Is there a third perspective on aging with dementia that can provide some degree of hope?

Persons with dementia can still retain the capacity to experience humor, joy, and mutual interactions. Therein lie the seeds of a new perspective on aging.

Let’s begin by considering what it means to age successfully. Erik Erikson

 suggested that developing a sense of integrity was the key task in later life, enabling us to overcome feelings of despair over lost opportunities and grow the strength of wisdom. John Rowe and Robert Kahn

 suggested a more specific concept of “successful aging” defined by a decreased risk of disease and disability, robust mental and physical functioning, and active engagement in meaningful activities.

A number of key longitudinal studies of the most successful (and long-lived) aged individuals have found them to have strong marriages and other relationships, healthy defense mechanisms, and conscientious personalities.

We can extend this notion of successful aging even further, based on the strengths of aging that continue to emerge and develop over time. As we age, we gain more knowledge and experience; we learn lessons that enhance our judgment; we face failures that teach us humility and enhance our empathy for others; we experience heightened levels of creativity; and with the ever-approaching horizon of life, we can gain greater acceptance, insight, and spirituality.

Put together, these age-emergent factors help us to develop a wide range of strengths and roles that constitute 

. Such wisdom is supported by research showing that well-being and longevity are increased by positive attitudes towards aging, a sense of purpose, and the ability to adapt to change.

This whole calculus changes, however, when someone is suffering from dementia. It seems difficult if not impossible to say someone is aging “successfully” when they have progressive cognitive and functional loss. Erikson himself, towards the end of his own productive career, suggested that there was a final stage of life where despair threatened to become the dominant force due to daily struggles and losses.

There comes a point, argues medical ethicist Ezekial Emanuel and others, where we have simply lived too long.

 At this stage, our models of aging seem to fail us. Let’s turn back to the question I posed in the opening paragraph: Is there a third perspective on aging here, even in the throes of dementia?

 emphasized that there can be growth, meaning, and purpose even in the face of adversity in late life. We can extend this philosophy to those with dementia who still retain the capacity to remember the past, engage in pleasurable and meaningful sensorimotor activities, experience humor, joy and mutual interactions, and participate with and give to others. Presence can substitute for performance, and the process of connecting with others can substitute for productivity.

Wisdom is still present and can be recognized and shared, as individuals can serve as repositories of knowledge, cultural and religious icons, creators of artistic items, and explorers of art and nature. The difference at this stage is that others are needed to help bring out and engage these strengths. Trial and error and creative exploration are ingredients to discovering which interactions and activities are most relevant and meaningful given the background, preferences, and limitations of people with dementia.

Some of the best examples of these creative engagements include the 

 program created by Dr. Elizabeth Lokon; 

 storytelling created by 2016 MacArthur “genius grant” recipient Anne Basting; and 

, the program to bring iPods loaded with music to nursing home residents. Each of these award-winning projects taps into the residual strengths of individuals with dementia and brings meaning and joy in ways that are absolutely successful and positive.

Ultimately, this third perspective on aging, which sees strengths endure regardless of our mental or physical conditions, requires us to conjure attitudes of respect, creative engagement, and hope for those who rely on our help, but have much to give back in return.

 This article is a summary of a presentation on this topic that Dr. Agronin gave at the 2017 US Psychiatric & Mental Health Congress in New Orleans

, Louisiana. Dr. Agronin is Vice President for Behavioral Health and Clinical Research at Miami Jewish Health in Miami, Florida.

How We Age and The Dementia Caregiver: A Guide to Caring for Someone with Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Neurocognitive Disorders.

The End of Old Age: Living a Longer and More Purposeful Life,

 will be published in January. He reports no conflicts of interest concerning the subject matter of this article.

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2. Rowe JW, Kahn RL. Successful Aging: The MacArthur Foundation Study. New York, NY: Pantheon Books, 1998.

3. Vaillant GE. Aging Well. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company, 2002.

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6. Carstensen LL.  A Long Bright Future: An Action Plan for a Lifetime of Happiness, Health, and Financial Security

7. Ryff CD, Singer BH. Know thyself and become what you are: a eudaimonic approach to psychological well-being. J Happ Stu. 2008; 9: 13–39.

8. Baltes PB, Baltes MM.  Successful Aging: Perspectives from the Behavioral Sciences. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1990.

9. Emanuel EJ. Why I hope to die at 75. The Atlantic, October, 2014.

10. Cohen GD. The Mature Mind. New York, NY: Basic Books; 2005.

Is Successful Aging Possible in the Face of Dementia?

[Editor's note: This article is a summary of a presentation on this topic that Dr. Agronin gave at the 29th US Psychiatric & Mental Health Congress, held October 21-24, 2016 in San Antonio.]

Consider the following question: at what age do you think you made better decisions-at 18 or your current age?

Most people do not need to reflect long on their answer and choose their current age, since years of accrued knowledge and experience have brought them a more mature and wiser perspective.

But consider a follow-up question: do you think your decision-making will be better or worse when you are in your 80s and 90s?

On the one hand, our aging brains will not be as efficient or nimble in late life, since we all experience a modest decline in certain cognitive abilities. On the other hand, barring major brain damage, we might continue to grow and develop other cognitive powers because of and not in spite of aging. How can we understand and leverage this process in order to build a better older brain?

If we measure our cognition by looking at discrete neuropsychological abilities on standardized testing, we see 2 key trends emerging with age. Fluid intelligence-defined by problem solving, reasoning, logic, and pattern recognition-begins to decline in middle age and is characterized by slower processing speed, more frequent memory lapses, less efficient multitasking, and a decreased ability to suppress or inhibit distracting stimuli.

 In contrast, crystallized intelligence-defined by knowledge, vocabulary, skills, and experience-remains stable or increases into late life, with a much later period when declines might occur.

These changes correspond to declines in neuronal metabolism and increasing neuronal death, yet at the same time neurons can continue to form connections and revise and reroute networks. The main tipping point for many individuals lies in the dramatically increased risk of Alzheimer disease and other neurocognitive disorders. Prevalence rates exceed 50% of the population aged 85 years and older. If we can avoid (and one day cure) dementia in late life, there is an opportunity to build a better brain through the ongoing development of several age-conferred strengths.

There are 3 fundamental elements to a better older brain. The first is the protective base of skills and attributes that we build over time, our reserve. This includes our brain reserve that is the physical density of neurons and neuronal connections that set the threshold for the clinical expression of brain pathology, and our cognitive reserve that represents the abilities and skills that can compensate for brain damage. We also have reserves of ego strength, emotional maturity, motivation, and spirituality that can buffer cognitive decline. The second element of a better brain is our resilience in the face of adversity, enabling us to successfully cope and find ways to resume normal functioning. The third element is our ability to reinvent ourselves by finding creative solutions and novel, purposeful pursuits.

The process of resilience and reinvention is supported by psychologist Laura Carstensen’s

 socioemotional selectivity theory, which proposes that we tend to seek out more positive and meaningful activities in later life as our horizon of time looms closer. Put together, these 3 elements of the better older brain involve a maturing and integration of our life skills and experiences under what Gene Cohen

 labels our “developmental intelligence.”

Wisdom may be a clichÃ© with multiple meanings, but generally it refers to being able to apply our accrued knowledge and experience in a balanced, pragmatic, empathic, and insightful way. Wisdom involves a process of reflecting on life experiences and making decisions that serve a higher purpose or virtue. It comes with age but does not depend on being old and has variations based on one’s background and culture.

 suggested that wisdom is based on postformal thinking, in which we mature beyond Piaget’s stage of formal operations (defined by abstract thinking, achieved by late adolescence) and are able to think more relatively, pragmatically, and less egocentrically. Cohen suggests that this wisdom provides a “developmental impetus” to boost our creativity and give us confidence to make necessary changes.

Creativity can also grow with age and does not depend on complete integrity of memory and other cognitive functions. Many older artists, such as the painter Henri Matisse and the dancer Martha Graham, were able to reinvent themselves after late-life health crises and channel their creativity into stunning pursuits. Creativity itself is not confined to artistic pursuits, however, but is a developing skill that can enhance relationships, responses to adversity, and intergenerational and community interactions.

There is no magic pill or fountain of youth that can build a better older brain, but there are several key strategies. Studies of centenarians and other long-lived persons from the so-called “blue zones” around the world emphasize the role of active physical and social lifestyles, being connected closely with other people and communal groups, a local and largely plant-based diet, and well-developed senses of purpose, gratitude, confidence, and tolerance.

Physical activity does not need to involve intense body-building or marathon running but a more moderate approach such as walking, swimming, gardening, dancing, or other enjoyable activities several times a week. Aerobic activities provide the most benefit: improved cerebral blood flow, reduced cortical atrophy, and increased release of neural growth factors. Brain fitness may involve regular structured activities, including computerized modules, but may also involve regular, enjoyable intellectual pursuits that cross-train our mental abilities, such as learning a new language, starting a new hobby, or attending lifelong learning programs.

The Mediterranean diet maximizes brain-healthy foods (leafy green and other vegetables, nuts, berries, beans, whole grains, fish, poultry, olive oil, and wine) and minimizes brain-unhealthy foods (red meats, butter and margarine, cheese, pastries and sweets, and fried and fast foods). The MIND diet combines a Mediterranean diet with the DASH diet (designed for lowering weight and blood pressure) and has been associated with a reduced incidence of Alzheimer disease.

We must also keep in mind that our attitudes toward aging can influence our brain health. Psychologist Becca Levy’s

 stereotype embodiment theory posits that age stereotypes can become internalized and have an unconscious but truly negative impact on performance, health, and longevity. Ellen Langer’s

 “counterclockwise” study of older men showed that immersion in an environment that reminded them of younger days and forced them to think and act like their younger selves had a significantly positive impact on their overall health and function in just a few weeks.

Together, these brain-healthy approaches will not only build a better brain, but may also reduce the risk or delay the onset of more serious cognitive decline. In his book 

 provides a simple 14-day plan to jump-start such an approach. In a later work he provides empirical evidence for the benefits of these factors, and suggests that long-term adoption of a brain-healthy lifestyle might be able to delay the development of dementia for 2 to 4 years.

Ultimately, we increasingly have longer and healthier lives in which to realize a better older brain-and the tools we need are right in front of us.

Dr. Agronin is a geriatric psychiatrist and Vice President of Behavioral Health and Clinical Research at the Miami Jewish Health Systems in Florida.

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There is no magic pill or fountain of youth that can build a better older brain, but there are several key strategies.

Author | Marc E. Agronin, MD