Hypnotic Medications as an Adjunct Treatment to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Alone or in Combination with Eszopiclone in Comorbid Insomnia and Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomized Trial

We sought to assess the augmentation of brief behavioral therapy for insomnia (BBTI) with eszopiclone (ESZ) over BBTI alone for the treatment of chronic insomnia on sleep quality, sleep indices, and continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) adherence in PTSD veterans with COMISA. The pilot trial involved 53 PTSD patients (46 males and 7 females, mean age 48.2±8.3 years) with COMISA randomized to combination therapy of BBTI plus 2 weeks of eszopiclone (2 mg/d) or BBTI alone with follow-up visits conducted at 6 and 24 weeks. The main outcome measure was sleep quality assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A significant decrease in PSQI scores was observed between baseline and 24 weeks for BBTI plus ESZ (-5.24 [95% CI, -6.55 to -3.94]; p < 0.001) and BBTI-only (-5.45 [95%CI, -6.75 to -4.14]; p < 0.001). No significant group allocation effects x time interactions were detected. Similar improvements were recorded for ISI between baseline and 24 weeks (BBTI plus ESZ (-8.32 [95%CI, -10.51 to -6.14]; p < 0.001) and BBTI-only (-8.64 [95%CI, -10.88 to -6.41]; p < 0.001)) with no interaction effect between treatment groups x time. Combination therapy produced a higher remission rate of insomnia at 6 weeks, with both interventions achieving comparable rates at 24 weeks. Results of the mixed effect models for CPAP use revealed no group x time interaction effects. In patients with COMISA, the combination of eszopiclone with BBTI resulted in comparable improvement in sleep quality of life to that achieved with BBTI-only therapy. Although the addition of eszopiclone to BBTI conferred an early benefit in remission rate of insomnia relative to BBTI, both modalities achieved similar outcomes at long-term follow-up. Clinical Trial Registration This study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier NCT03937713).

Insomnia in ambulatory care: A clinical review

PURPOSE

One-third to one-half of ambulatory care patients report insomnia. The objective of this clinical review is to detail the many causes and evidence-based treatment options for insomnia in outpatients and to recommend screening and summarize evidence for the place in therapy of prescription and nonprescription treatments.

SUMMARY

This work provides an overview of the literature on insomnia regarding causes, patient assessment, and nonpharmacological and pharmacological treatments. Patients who present with insomnia should be assessed for sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, narcolepsy, and all contributing medications as well as medical, psychiatric, and substance use disorder diagnoses. The type of insomnia, namely difficulty falling asleep, difficulty maintaining sleep, and early morning awakening with resulting functional impairment, should be documented in addition to whether insomnia is short term or persistent. Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) or digital CBT-I is first-line treatment for all patients with insomnia irrespective of the cause or type. Nonprescription treatments such as antihistamines or melatonin are for select populations. Prescription hypnotics are best utilized on an as-needed basis or for nightly use for less than 6 weeks. Z-hypnotics are safe and effective for insomnia in persons with depression or an anxiety disorder but should be avoided in older individuals or if there is respiratory or cognitive impairment. Orexin receptor antagonists are effective for sleep initiation and maintenance in healthy persons or if there is mild cognitive impairment, but they require further study in individuals with psychiatric and medical diagnoses. Trazodone is the most prescribed off-label treatment due to its efficacy for sleep initiation and maintenance and its lack of abuse potential.

CONCLUSION

Insomnia treatment should be guided by patient age, diagnoses, and type of insomnia. Pharmacological treatments should be used at the lowest effective dose for the shortest duration of time.

The Function of Sleep and the Treatment of Primary Insomnia

BACKGROUND

Approximately 21 900 women and 35 300 men developed lung cancer in Germany in 2018, and 16 999 women and 27 882 men died of it. The outcome mainly depends on the tumor stage. In early stages (stage I or II), treatment can be curative; unfortunately, because early-stage lung cancers are generally asymptom - atic, 74% of women and 77% of men already have advanced-stage disease (stage III or IV) at the time of diagnosis. Screening with low-dose computed tomography is an option enabling early diagnosis and curative treatment.

METHODS

This review is based on pertinent articles retrieved by a selective search of the literature on screening for lung cancer.

RESULTS

In the studies of lung cancer screening that have been published to date, sensitivity ranged from 68.5% to 93.8%, and specificity from 73.4% to 99.2%. A meta-analysis by the German Federal Office for Radiation Protection revealed a 15% reduction in lung cancer mortality when low-dose computed tomography was used in persons who were judged to be at high risk for lung cancer (risk ratio [RR] 0.85, 95% confidence interval [0.77; 0.95]). 1.9% of subjects died in the screening arm of the meta-analysis, and 2.2% in the control group. The observation periods ranged from 6.6 to 10 years; false-positive rates ranged from 84.9% to 96.4%. Malignant findings were confirmed in 45% to 70% of the biopsies or resective procedures that were performed.

CONCLUSION

Systematic lung cancer screening with low-dose CT lowers mortality from lung cancer in (current or former) heavy smokers. This benefit must be weighed against the high rate of false-positive findings and overdiagnoses.