Sections
Treatment of Insomnia: Introduction | Morbidity of Insomnia and Consequences of Sleep Loss | Sleep Architecture | Sleep Physiology as It Relates to Insomnia | The Insomnia Complaint | Differential Diagnosis of the Chronic Insomnia Complaint:
A Six-Step Decision Process | Sleep Laboratory Studies | Treatment of Chronic Insomnia | Insomnia in the Elderly | Conclusion | References
Excerpt
Our conceptualization of insomnia has undergone
a dramatic shift during the past few years, from an annoying but
not particularly serious symptom to the recognition that 1) sleep
loss from any cause has serious consequences, 2) chronic insomnia
and the impaired sleep it represents are highly comorbid with (or
indeed may cause) many other medical and psychiatric disorders,
and 3) chronic insomnia in some cases may represent a separate medical
disorder in itself, with an independent neurobiological basis. It
has been suggested that certain chronic insomnias be considered
on a par with depression as a serious disorder with a tendency toward
chronicity whose treatment needs independent assessment and possibly long-term
management (Jindal et al. 2004). This increase in complexity
is in part offset by improved treatment options, both pharmacological
and nonpharmacological. This chapter will review these areas in
what we hope is a clinically useful manner.