ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the current status of agitated behaviors among institutionalized elderly with dementia. Methods The Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI) and General Information questionnaire were used to collect information of agitated behaviors among 141 institutionalized elderly with dementia in a long-term care facility in Guangzhou. Results Nearly 90.07％(127/141) of the elderly with dementia had the symptoms of agitation. Among the four categories of the agitated behaviors, the incidence for physically non-aggressive behaviors (82.27％, 116/141) was the highest, followed by physically aggressive behaviors (78.72％ , 111/141), verbally non- aggressive behaviors (74.47％, 105/141) and verbally aggressive behaviors (64.54％, 91/141). Spitting, repetitive sentences or questions, complaining occurred frequently. Conclusions The incidence of the agitated behaviors was high and the manifestation and types of agitated behaviors were varied, which should be paid attention to by the institution. It is necessary to develop the personalized, systematic, standardized nursing intervention to provide the support for caregivers and help the elderly with dementia to cope with agitation.