Brain & Nervous System Alzheimer's Symptoms Possible Causes of Hallucinations in Alzheimer's By Andrew Rosenzweig, MD Updated on April 27, 2022 Medically reviewed by Diana Apetauerova, MD Print Delusions and hallucinations in Alzheimer's disease are quite common, affecting up to half of all Alzheimer's patients, usually in the middle stages of the disease. While they can occur in all five senses, seeing things (visual hallucinations) is the most common type. But, what causes them to occur? While chances are reasonably good that if your loved one is seeing people in her home who are not there, it is a symptom of her dementia, it's important to realize that there are other possible causes as well. Hallucinations can occur for a variety of reasons in later life, with one large study in Sweden finding that almost 7% of all 85-year-old individuals without dementia were experiencing hallucinations. Buena Vista Images / Getty Images Psychiatric Disorders In addition to dementia, hallucinations may occur in delirium, schizophrenia, major depression, and alcohol or drug intoxication or withdrawal. Medical Disorders Any sudden injury to the brain, including a stroke or a seizure, can cause auditory or visual hallucinations. Certain types of medications, including benzodiazepines (like Valium and Xanax), Parkinson's drugs (like Sinemet), and drugs for urinary retention (like Ditropan), can cause hallucinations. Sensory Loss Problems with vision or hearing may increase the chances of developing hallucinations. Charles Bonnet Syndrome is a condition that causes mentally healthy people with visual loss to have complex visual hallucinations. Images of complex colored patterns and of people, animals, and plants are common. In older people who lose their hearing, they may experience musical hallucinations, hearing music in their ears even when no music is being played near them. Environment As with many symptoms of dementia, the environment plays a role in hallucinations as well. Poorly lit rooms and loud, chaotic settings may lead to misperceptions and worsening of hallucinations. Nursing homes may have a PA system over which announcements are made and residents with dementia may perceive this as hearing voices coming from the ceiling. Sources Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Menon G., Rahman I. et al. Complex Visual Hallucinations in the Visually Impaired: The Charles Bonnet Syndrome. Survey of Ophthalmology January 2003 48,1; 58-72. Blazer D., MD, Stefens D., MD, Busse E., MD, ed. Textbook of Geriatric Psychiatry, Third Edition, American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc., 2004, p.269, 273 Rabins P., Lyketsos C., Steele C., Practical Dementia Care, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 2006, pp. 159-60. By Andrew Rosenzweig, MD Andrew Rosenzweig, MD, MPH, is an Alzheimer's disease expert and the chief clinical officer for MedOptions. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Medical Expert Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Other Helpful Report an Error Submit