A good night’s sleep eludes many people with epilepsy, thus significantly impacting their quality of life. And while there has been speculation regarding the role specific antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) may have on sleep quality in people with epilepsy, there have been few studies examining the relationship with insomnia—until now. Today, Carl Bazil, M.D., Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology, Columbia University, and colleagues presented their latest research exploring the link between AEDs and insomnia at the American Epilepsy Society 59th Annual Meeting in Washington DC.
Bazil’s interest in investigating the effect specific AEDs have on sleep in patients with epilepsy began with clinical observations that some patients improved in terms of sleep with certain agents, while others developed insomnia. “There have been studies for years suggesting that certain AEDs could adversely affect sleep, especially phenobarbital and phenytoin. There are others (like felbamate) that were shown to commonly cause insomnia starting in the initial clinical trials. So I became interested in further exploring these relationships”, said Bazil.
Bazil et al. used the Columbia University AED database, which includes detailed information on patients taking virtually all marketed AEDs, alone or in combination. Data were compiled on all outpatients seen from January 1, 2000 to January 1, 2004. The researchers correlated insomnia, as reported by patients or physicians during routine office, with the use of individual AEDs, and evaluated insomnia resulting in AED dose reduction or discontinuation. They also looked at predictors of insomnia independent of AED use, including: gender; epilepsy classification; presence of cognitive, psychiatric, or sedative side effects; and history of epilepsy surgery.
Results
Medical records from 818 patients were included in the study. All patients had been newly started on one of the 14 AEDs, either as monotherapy or in combination with other AEDs. Insomnia was seen most commonly with felbamate (18%) especially when compared with all other drugs. The data also revealed that insomnia was seen with lamotrigine and zonisamide (3%), topiramate (2%), and levetiracetam and gabapentin (1%), though at much lower frequencies. Drugs not associated with insomnia included: clobazam, carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin, tiagabine, vigabatrin, and valproate.
“We found that insomnia is significantly associated with felbamate use and is seen rarely with several other AEDs, particularly lamotrigine, zonisamide, and levetiracetam. For other AEDs, particularly those with known sedative effects, we did not see insomnia. That insomnia was most commonly reported with felbamate was not surprising, but confirms anecdotal reports”, said Bazil.
Bazil recognizes the need for further research regarding insomnia in the epilepsy population. He believes future research needs to be focused specifically on the examination of sleep problems, sleep disorders, and sleep habits as well as seizures and AED use. “We are actually in the process of conducting a study looking at a large outpatient population for determination of the prevalence of various sleep disorders, including insomnia. This will be a first step in research ultimately looking at the impact of insomnia and other sleep disorders not only on the occurrence of seizures in these patients, but also on their overall quality of life. We think that for many patients, stopping seizures may not be enough if other disorders such as insomnia remain.”
The abstract of this study is published in Epilepsia 2005, Vol. 46, Supplement 8, p.169.
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Showing posts with label Insomnia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Insomnia. Show all posts
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Sleep Matters!
Sleep is our body's natural way of shutting off and recuperating from the entire day's activities. Sleep keeps our brain healthy by giving rest to parts that control emotions and social interactions and maintain cognitive skills such as speech and thinking. Lack of sleep can have the absolute opposite effect on brain functioning with controls like memory, concentration, planning and sense of time being severely affected. In more serious cases, lack of sleep is manifested as a sleep disorder that is intimately related to various psychological disorders like depression and anxiety.
What Is Sleep Apnoea?
According to the National Sleep Foundation, sleep apnoea may affect between 20 and 40% of adult snoring population, topping the list of sleep disorders. The more common form is referred to as “Obstructive Sleep Apnoea” (OSA), which occurs due to an obstruction that prevents air from entering lungs. Lack of muscle tone in the upper airways during sleep causes their collapse and blocks the airway. The brain senses this lack of oxygen and automatically wakes you up, usually with a loud snore in order to breathe again. OSA becomes clinically significant only if the stopping of breathing lasts more than 10 seconds and occurs more than 10 times in an hour.
The more serious form of sleep apnoea is referred to as “Central sleep apnoea” wherein the brain 'forgets to breathe' during sleep. Brain cells live on oxygen and a long pause in breathing reduces the blood level of oxygen, eventually causing severe brain damage and even death.
Symptoms
Disturbed sleep, excessive sleepiness during the day along with irritability and restlessness are common symptoms. Surprisingly though, patients are unaware of the lack of a proper night's sleep caused by these repeated interruptions. The other common symptoms are:
* Snoring
* Impaired concentration
* Restlessness during sleep
* Decreased libido
* A personality change
* Choking during sleep
Snoring And Insomnia- Their Correlation With Sleep Apnoea
Snoring does not always mean “difficulty in breathing” and does not confirm sleep apnoea. On the contrary, blocked airways hardly allow any air to circulate diminishing the possibility of a snore. However, snoring coupled with obesity could be a strong indicator for OSA, the reason being, fat deposition around the upper airway cause obstruction.
Read more: http://sleep-disorders.suite101.com/article.cfm/sleep_matters#ixzz0O5ouZJSp
What Is Sleep Apnoea?
According to the National Sleep Foundation, sleep apnoea may affect between 20 and 40% of adult snoring population, topping the list of sleep disorders. The more common form is referred to as “Obstructive Sleep Apnoea” (OSA), which occurs due to an obstruction that prevents air from entering lungs. Lack of muscle tone in the upper airways during sleep causes their collapse and blocks the airway. The brain senses this lack of oxygen and automatically wakes you up, usually with a loud snore in order to breathe again. OSA becomes clinically significant only if the stopping of breathing lasts more than 10 seconds and occurs more than 10 times in an hour.
The more serious form of sleep apnoea is referred to as “Central sleep apnoea” wherein the brain 'forgets to breathe' during sleep. Brain cells live on oxygen and a long pause in breathing reduces the blood level of oxygen, eventually causing severe brain damage and even death.
Symptoms
Disturbed sleep, excessive sleepiness during the day along with irritability and restlessness are common symptoms. Surprisingly though, patients are unaware of the lack of a proper night's sleep caused by these repeated interruptions. The other common symptoms are:
* Snoring
* Impaired concentration
* Restlessness during sleep
* Decreased libido
* A personality change
* Choking during sleep
Snoring And Insomnia- Their Correlation With Sleep Apnoea
Snoring does not always mean “difficulty in breathing” and does not confirm sleep apnoea. On the contrary, blocked airways hardly allow any air to circulate diminishing the possibility of a snore. However, snoring coupled with obesity could be a strong indicator for OSA, the reason being, fat deposition around the upper airway cause obstruction.
Read more: http://sleep-disorders.suite101.com/article.cfm/sleep_matters#ixzz0O5ouZJSp
Sleep Disorder... or another way of saying Insomnia! Sheesh
The term “sleep disorder” encompasses awakenings, snoring, certain types of muscle pain, or just overall discomfort due to the positioning of the person who is trying to remain asleep. Sleep disorders fulfill a large percentage of medical problems that found in general medicine, family practice, and the field of psychiatric medicine today.
The human body tends to have specific mechanisms that involve hormones, cells, and muscle tissue that all work together in order to provide a person with the sleep he or she needs. Sleep disorder patients tend to have symptoms and difficulties that show up during the day.
Sleep tests and polysomnograms (PSG) are often needed to properly diagnose and thoroughly investigate the physical issues someone may have that are keeping him or her from getting the right amount of sleep.
Sleep Disorder Statistics
Sleep disorder visits are becoming an increasing stop for patients in medical clinics worldwide. The statistics that have been compiled for sleep disorders are quite astounding in numbers. Each year, a large percentage of Americans, 20-40% to be exact, complain of sleep problems experienced at some point in their life.
Among those complaining of sleep disorders, many victims also report an insufficient amount of sleep. 20% of adult patients these days approach their doctor and tell them they may have insomnia, or the inability to sleep.
Read more: http://sleep-disorders.suite101.com/article.cfm/sleep_disorders_explained#ixzz0O5nnPmna
The human body tends to have specific mechanisms that involve hormones, cells, and muscle tissue that all work together in order to provide a person with the sleep he or she needs. Sleep disorder patients tend to have symptoms and difficulties that show up during the day.
Sleep tests and polysomnograms (PSG) are often needed to properly diagnose and thoroughly investigate the physical issues someone may have that are keeping him or her from getting the right amount of sleep.
Sleep Disorder Statistics
Sleep disorder visits are becoming an increasing stop for patients in medical clinics worldwide. The statistics that have been compiled for sleep disorders are quite astounding in numbers. Each year, a large percentage of Americans, 20-40% to be exact, complain of sleep problems experienced at some point in their life.
Among those complaining of sleep disorders, many victims also report an insufficient amount of sleep. 20% of adult patients these days approach their doctor and tell them they may have insomnia, or the inability to sleep.
Read more: http://sleep-disorders.suite101.com/article.cfm/sleep_disorders_explained#ixzz0O5nnPmna
Insomnia-I hate it!
Insomnia is a common problem that may be temporary or chronic. As many as one in 10 Americans have chronic insomnia, and at least one in four has difficulty sleeping sometimes. But that doesn't mean you have to just put up with sleepless nights. Some simple changes in your daily routine and habits may result in better sleep.
Insomnia can cause problems during the day, such as excessive sleepiness, fatigue, trouble thinking clearly or staying focused, or feeling depressed or irritable. It is not defined by the number of hours you sleep every night. Although the amount of sleep a person needs varies, most people need between 7 and 8 hours of sleep a night.
Most adults have experienced insomnia or sleeplessness at one time or another in their lives. An estimated 30-50% of the general population is affected by insomnia, and 10% have chronic insomnia. Insomnia affects all age groups. Among older adults, insomnia affects women more often than men. The incidence increases with age.
Not getting enough sleep is real curse, believe me I know. I've suffered from insomnia for many years now and have tried many assorted insomnia treatments with varying success. This website has been put together after years of sleep problems, with the aim of collecting together the information that has helped me with my long battle with insomnia.
Cures for Insomnia
Try a warm bath or hot shower before bedtime. Keep the bedroom temperature comfortable, not too hot or too cold. A heated blanket can be relaxing as well. Use cotton sheets with your favorite pillow(s).
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine or nicotine. It's best to abstain from these altogether but if you can't then try to avoid them before late afternoon/ early evening.
Do not allow yourself to take any naps during the day. While you may feel that power naps are refreshing your body throughout the day, they interrupt your nightly sleep cycle. They prevent your body from entering into the deeper sleep stages needed to refresh your body.
Participants in the study warm their hands and feet through relaxation techniques like visualization and deep breathing, which helps to draw the blood from the core of the body to the extremities.
Take from this what you will. It works for me whenever I need it, and it works for others too I understand. So if you simply need a bit of help getting to sleep, and you'd rather not resort to liquor or drugs or a depressing visit to the doctors, perhaps give this a try.
Honey is beneficial in the treatment of insomnia. It has a hypnotic action and induces a sound sleep. It should be taken with water, before going to bed, in doses of two teaspoons in a large cup of water. Babies generally fall asleep after taking honey.
Stress is something we can overcome with persistence. There are many ways of coping with stress and again, different things work for different people. We'll look at lots of them in these pages.
Insomnia can cause problems during the day, such as excessive sleepiness, fatigue, trouble thinking clearly or staying focused, or feeling depressed or irritable. It is not defined by the number of hours you sleep every night. Although the amount of sleep a person needs varies, most people need between 7 and 8 hours of sleep a night.
Most adults have experienced insomnia or sleeplessness at one time or another in their lives. An estimated 30-50% of the general population is affected by insomnia, and 10% have chronic insomnia. Insomnia affects all age groups. Among older adults, insomnia affects women more often than men. The incidence increases with age.
Not getting enough sleep is real curse, believe me I know. I've suffered from insomnia for many years now and have tried many assorted insomnia treatments with varying success. This website has been put together after years of sleep problems, with the aim of collecting together the information that has helped me with my long battle with insomnia.
Cures for Insomnia
Try a warm bath or hot shower before bedtime. Keep the bedroom temperature comfortable, not too hot or too cold. A heated blanket can be relaxing as well. Use cotton sheets with your favorite pillow(s).
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine or nicotine. It's best to abstain from these altogether but if you can't then try to avoid them before late afternoon/ early evening.
Do not allow yourself to take any naps during the day. While you may feel that power naps are refreshing your body throughout the day, they interrupt your nightly sleep cycle. They prevent your body from entering into the deeper sleep stages needed to refresh your body.
Participants in the study warm their hands and feet through relaxation techniques like visualization and deep breathing, which helps to draw the blood from the core of the body to the extremities.
Take from this what you will. It works for me whenever I need it, and it works for others too I understand. So if you simply need a bit of help getting to sleep, and you'd rather not resort to liquor or drugs or a depressing visit to the doctors, perhaps give this a try.
Honey is beneficial in the treatment of insomnia. It has a hypnotic action and induces a sound sleep. It should be taken with water, before going to bed, in doses of two teaspoons in a large cup of water. Babies generally fall asleep after taking honey.
Stress is something we can overcome with persistence. There are many ways of coping with stress and again, different things work for different people. We'll look at lots of them in these pages.
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