DSSSB - 28 August 2019 (Shift-1)
Mental Health Nursing
Easy
What is "sun drowning"?
Appeared in: DSSSB - 28 August 2019 (Shift-1)
Explanation
- The question uses the term "sun drowning," which is a common misspelling of "sundowning.".
- Sundowning, or sundowner syndrome, is characterized by the worsening of neuropsychiatric symptoms like confusion, agitation, and restlessness in the late afternoon or evening.
- This pattern is frequently observed in individuals with dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease.
- The phenomenon is linked to the disruption of the body's internal clock and environmental cues like diminishing light.
Why Other Options Were Wrong
- Option A: Stereotyped behaviour refers to repetitive, often purposeless movements (like rocking or hand-flapping) and is not defined by the time of day it occurs. Sundowning is specifically a time-dependent worsening of symptoms.
- Option C: Incontinence during the night (nocturnal enuresis) is the involuntary loss of urine during sleep. While it can occur in patients with dementia, it is a separate physiological symptom and not the defining characteristic of the cognitive and behavioral changes seen in sundowning.
- Option D: This describes confabulation, a memory disturbance where a person unconsciously creates false memories to fill in gaps. It is not related to the time-specific agitation and confusion of sundowning.
Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
- Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Sundowning in Dementia as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
- Recognizing sundowning is critical for nurses to ensure patient safety, as confusion and agitation can increase the risk of falls and other accidents.
- Care plans for patients with dementia must include specific non-pharmacological interventions to manage sundowning, such as environmental modifications and activity planning.
- Understanding sundowning helps nurses educate and support family caregivers, reducing their stress and improving the patient's quality of life.
How to Approach the Question
- First, recognize that "sun drowning" is a likely misspelling or misinterpretation of a medical term. Consider similar-sounding terms you know.
- The most plausible term is "sundowning." Access your knowledge about this syndrome.
- Evaluate the options based on the definition of sundowning. Recall that it involves a pattern of worsening symptoms (confusion, agitation) linked to a specific time of day (evening).
- Option B, "Worsening of symptoms and confusion in the evening," directly matches the definition of sundowning.
- Briefly consider the other options to confirm they describe different phenomena (stereotypy, incontinence, confabulation) to solidify your choice.
Concept Tested & Keywords
- Concept Tested: Sundowning in Dementia
- Stem keywords: sun drowning
- Lead-in keywords: What is
- Negative lead-in flag: false
Question ID
QikDGsdufUSCfmB7BxBhTq
Reference Book
E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 765-767
E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 4034-4036
Practise the full DSSSB - 28 August 2019 (Shift-1)
Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.
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