Behavioral disturbances (BD) occurring in very old patients suffering from cognitive impairment frequently disturb their next of kin or the neighbors whether they live in the community or in a nursing home, and often justify their hospitalization in geriatric psychiatry. In hospital settings, BD increases length of stay insofar as both nursing homes and home care services are reluctant to take patients back unless there BD have disappeared or are stabilized at socially acceptable levels. The management of BD remains a permanent challenge for the relatives as well as for health care professionals, thus the need for a quantitative,. prospective approach such as the one presented here.