Insomnia may precede and prolong major depression

[Guest guest]

This isn't an " Alternative Medicine " article per se, but it confirms

something I have long suspected based on my own experience--that

insomnia causes depression. Of course, as an article I posted here

recently pointed out, conventional medicine now admits that it does not

know how to treat chronic insomnia.

 

Cathy B.

 

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http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-06/uorm-imp062105.php

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University of Rochester Medical Center

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Insomnia may precede and prolong major depression

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Sleep studied as potential treatment for depression

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Two new studies show that insomnia, far from being a symptom or side

effect of depression, may instead precede it, making some patients more

likely to become and remain mentally ill. One paper was presented today

at the 19th Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep

Societies (APSS) in Denver, and the other will be published shortly in

the Journal of Behavioral Sleep Medicine.

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In recent years, researchers established that insomnia and depression

are linked, but struggled to determine which came first. Many experts

believed that depression caused insomnia until new drugs arrived that

improved depression, but not insomnia. The idea that insomnia could be a

contributor to, or predictor of, depression gained credence.

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The study presented today at APSS is the first to establish that

insomnia prolongs bouts of sadness, hopelessness and loss of interest in

life activities that characterize major depression, making patients less

likely to recover. Specifically, the study found that depressed patients

with insomnia were nearly 11 times more likely to still be depressed at

six months than those sleeping well, and 17 times more likely to remain

ill after a year. Data were drawn from Project IMPACT, a study in

late-life depression that enrolled 1,801 men and women aged 65 years or

older.

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" The new findings are especially significant because they suggest that

targeted treatment for insomnia will increase the likelihood and speed

of recovery from depression, " said Michael Perlis, Ph.D., director of

the University of Rochester Sleep and Neurophysiology Research

Laboratory (URSNRL), and an author the studies presented at APSS and

published in the journal. Wilfred Pigeon, Ph.D., asst. director of the

sleep lab, was lead author of the study presented today.

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Perlis is the lead author of the upcoming journal article, which found

that elderly patients with insomnia (and no history of depression) are 6

times more likely to experience an initial episode of depression than

individuals without insomnia. The results from this study also suggest

that the risk is especially high in elderly women, and in individuals

who experience one of three types of insomnia. Most at risk for

first-time depression were patients with severe " middle insomnia, " a

pattern where patients wake up frequently during the night, but

eventually fall back to sleep each time.

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Elderly patients are a focus of research because two million older

adults have a depressive illness, and five million more experience less

severe forms of depression. As a group, they account for 18 percent of

all suicide deaths despite representing just 13 percent of the

population. At the same time, studies have found that 42 percent of

elderly adults have trouble sleeping.

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The two studies reflect a larger effort underway at the URSNRL, which

recently received $2.3 million in grant support from the National

Institutes of Health to investigate whether treatment for insomnia can

reduce major depression and improve pain tolerance in patients with

chronic back pain. Clinical studies are underway to determine whether or

not cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia leads to fewer, shorter

and less severe bouts of depression, as well as to improved pain

tolerance.

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In addition to the studies mentioned above, the sleep lab is also

conducting clinical trials on insomnia secondary to cancer and a variety

of treatment studies on both the medical treatment and cognitive

behavioral therapy of insomnia.

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While many studies are conducted on an outpatient basis, some studies

are conducted in the laboratory, which features an apartment-like suite

with four bedrooms, two baths, offices and a control room with

electrophysiologic equipment to monitor sleep patterns.

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Study participants receive a free physical exam and an analysis of how

to improve their sleep, as well as free treatment. For more information

or to enroll in a sleep study, please call 585-475-3379 (585-4-sleepy)

or visit www.sleeplessinrochester.com.

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