Active clinical trials for "Dyssomnias"

One of the major challenges in adapting to high altitudes is that with increasing altitude sleeping quality declines rapidly. Thus, the night sleep can only provide limited to none regeneration. It usually takes a prolonged stay at a constant altitude to adapt sufficiently to the altitude and to have a refreshing night sleep. 1975 Reit et. al showed in their EEG-recordings that the sleep architecture (the regular succession of the particular sleep phases) is disturbed by repeating arousals which occur due to an irregularity in the breathing rhythm. The purpose of this study is to create a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms that lead to failed acclimatization and AMS, due to sleep disturbance.

Individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) frequently suffer from emotional instability, daytime fatigue and sleep disturbances. The investigators examined circadian rhythms, sleep and well-being in women with BPD under their habitual life conditions with and without light treatment. Treated women diagnosed with BPD were investigated during 3 weeks without and 3 weeks with morning LT. Rest-activity cycles were continuously measured using wrist actigraphy, together with proximal skin temperature. Saliva samples were collected weekly to determine the diurnal melatonin rhythm. A range of self-ratings and questionnaires were used to assess depression and clinical state throughout the 6-week protocol. Ten matched healthy women followed the same 6-week protocol without light treatment.

Objectives: Primary Objectives: To establish concurrent criterion-related validity of the Brief Sleep Disturbance Scale (BSDS) by correlating the scale with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. To evaluate the construct validity of the BSDS through exploratory factor analysis. To examine possible predictors of sleep disturbance. To evaluate the reliability of the BSDS using Cronbach's coefficient alpha and test-retest reliability. To evaluate the sensitivity of the BSDS by administering it to the same group of patients (n = 60) prior to treatment with a regimen associated with sleep disturbance, during 4 weeks of treatment, and upon completion of treatment. To evaluate the psychometric properties of the BSDS in a sample of community dwelling adults. Secondary Objective: 1. To obtain pilot data from a small sample of patients who will wear an actigraph for one week.

Pain is one of the most common causes of healthcare contact and long-term sick leave, with negative consequences on physical and mental health. Poor sleep is common in chronic pain patients. Epidemiological studies indicate that 5-7% of patients with chronic pain are treated regularly with strong opioids. Negative side effects of pain modulating drugs on sleep quality have been reported, which may have negative influence on overall disease management in chronic pain patients. However, to date there are conflicting results regarding the effects of opioids on sleep, since the pain relieving effect of opioids seem to affect sleep positively. There is data suggesting that physical activity has positive effects on both pain perception and sleep quality (and duration). The aim of the study is to explore insomnia and characteristics of sleep in patients with chronic pain and the relationship with physical activity level and opioid use.

Drug-induced sleep endoscopy (DISE) is the most used technique for identifying the obstruction site associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This is due to the fact that it allows many patients to be examined in a daytime setting. This procedure uses sedative drugs to mimic natural sleep. However, associations with the site of upper airway (UA) collapse during natural sleep remain unclear. The aim of this explorative study is to identify UA collapse in patients with OSA using endoscopic techniques as well as flow shape characteristics and sound analyses during natural and drug-induced sleep. Furthermore, we want to optimize the measurement set-up of natural sleep endoscopy (NSE).

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is an ideal tool for the diagnosis and evaluation of hypertension.However, ABPM frequently measures the tightening feeling and buzzing sound of the blood pressure cuff during nighttime, which can cause the patient to wake up easily during sleep, which will affect the sleep of the patient. Moreover, improper awakening of the patient from sleep can significantly increase the patient's blood pressure and affect the accuracy of ABPM monitoring. The Effect of ABPM on Sleep Disturbance (EMBED) study is designed to examine whether ABPM affects sleep, as well as the relationship and influencing factors of sleep and ABPM results, and screening for people who are susceptible to ABPM testing.

Opioid abuse is a complex problem, which not only impacts on addicts' physical and psychological health individually, but also threats the society. Recently, spread of HIV via sexual behavior and needle sharing among injecting drug users (IDUs) also becomes a serious public health problem all over the world. In Taiwan, since the first HIV-infected IDU identified in 1987, the incident cases have mounted to 2,461 in 2005. To prevent the epidemics of HIV among IDUs, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) thus collaborated with Department of Justice and implemented harm reduction programs in 2005. It is the milestone that opioid addiction is officially treated as a health rather than a legal issue in Taiwan. Among the harm reduction programs of needle and syringe exchange for IDUs as well as substitution treatment for opioid dependence, methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) is one of the most important parts. Till 2008, there were over 13,000 heroin addicts participated in more than 80 MMT programs. Although the clinical evidences have proven the superior effectiveness of maintenance therapy in ameliorating illicit substances abuse, decreasing criminality and improving quality of life, there are common problems of sleep disturbance and neurocognitive impairments among the subjects receiving opioid medications. The concerns of the adverse effects might thus frustrate the subjects' motivation and compliance to maintain treatments. However, sleep disturbance and neurocognitive impairments related to opioid medications are often neglected in the clinical practices and there are scanty researches focusing on these crucial issues in the existing literature. In this prospective study, four groups of subjects including methadone maintenance treatment, buprenorphine/naloxone, medication-free opioid ex-addicts and healthy volunteers will be enrolled. Via the comprehensive assessments including clinical interview, neurocognitive examinations, electrocardiogram-based sleep breathing detector and pharmacogenomical evaluation, we will not only have the opportunities to have more insights on the impacts of opioid medications on sleep and neurocognitive performances, but also develop more adequate strategies to improve motivation and outcome in treating the opioid addicts.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic type of eczema affecting approximately 10% of adults and 12% of children in the US. The intense itching (pruritus) associated with AD can be significantly disruptive to sleep and quality of life for both the patients and their caregivers. AD is challenging to describe and measure. The purpose of this study is to see if we can reliably measure how much people with AD scratch and how scratching interferes with sleep and quality of life by using digital sensors, sleep studies and patient-reported information.

The purpose of this study is to compare the sleep quality of patients with psoriasis to patients without psoriasis.

The investigators will examine whether sleep problems in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are related to alterations in the production of melatonin (MT), a hormone that plays an important role in regulating sleep-wake cycle. Children with ASD experience high rates of sleep disturbances that potentially contribute to problems with thinking and behavior. It is unclear if changes in MT production cause sleep problems in children with ASD. MT is frequently used to treat these sleep problems; however, it has not been well established whether MT is an effective treatment. Our hypotheses concerning MT is children with ASD and sleep problems will have a delayed sleep-wake cycle and/or decreased MT production. This study will compare children diagnosed with ASD to "healthy" control children with no ASD diagnosis. All subjects will be recruited from one of three sites: Baylor College of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University and Columbia University. The investigators will use a standardized questionnaire to determine whether the child has sleep problems. The investigators will measure MT levels in saliva in ASD children with sleep problems and in a group of control children without sleep problems. Total 24-hour MT production will be determined from urine samples in these same two groups.