Gabapentin in the treatment of dementia-associated nocturnal agitation

Background: Nocturnal sleep of patients suffering from various forms of dementia is often impaired by nocturnal agitation or nocturnal wandering. Anticonvulsives such as carbamazepine or valproate are reported to have some therapeutic efficacy, but there is little information about other drugs suitable for treatment of this condition. Case Report: Our patient, a 77-year-old Czech woman with incipient vascular dementia, received gabapentin 400mg at bedtime for 6 months and showed convincing improvement. Conclusions: Gabapentin was very effective in treating nocturnal agitation.