RESEARCH - Talk therapy key to conquering insomnia

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Talk therapy key to conquering insomnia - study

Tue May 19, 2009 4:00pm EDT

CHICAGO, May 19 (Reuters) - Teaching insomniacs how to fall asleep

through talk therapy produces better results than continued use of

sleep medications that carry dependency risks, according to a study

released on Tuesday.

In a study of 160 adults diagnosed with chronic insomnia, researchers

at Laval University in Quebec, Canada, compared talk therapy with the

popular sleeping aid zolpidem, sold under the brand name Ambien by

Sanofi-Aventis (SASY.PA) but also available generically.

Insomnia is very common and can lead to depression and high blood

pressure, according to the report published in the Journal of the

American Medical Association.

In the six-week initial period, both weekly group therapy sessions and

nightly medication worked equally well, helping around 60 percent of

the patients get to sleep more quickly and sleep longer, researcher

Morin wrote.

During the six-month follow-up period, patients who had refresher

therapy sessions had better sleep than those offered drugs to take as

needed, he said.

" The best long-term outcome was obtained with patients treated with

combined therapy initially, followed by (talk therapy) alone, " Morin

wrote. " Although the present findings are promising, there is

currently no treatment that works for every patient with insomnia. "

Zolpidem is recommended for short periods. Side effects include

morning drowsiness and hallucinations if sleep does not arrive right

away, and drug dependence is not uncommon. There have also been

reports of sleepwalking, sleep driving, binge eating and talking while

sleeping on the drug.

Most effective against insomnia in the follow-up period were bimonthly

individual talk therapy sessions where patients could address residual

issues causing them to lose sleep.

In therapy, patients were instructed to only sleep in bed and to avoid

reading, watching television or spending time worrying in bed. They

were told to get up if unable to sleep after 20 minutes and return to

bed only when sleepy again, and to arise at the same time every

morning.

(Reporting by Stern; Editing by Maggie Fox)

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssHealthcareNews/idUSN1942637920090519

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