Insomnia

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More foods hinder than help sleep
A number of my apparently sleep-deprived friends and colleagues, upon learning I planned to write about foods that might help people sleep better, have told me they're eager to see what I come up with. Health - Sleep Disorders - Conditions and Diseases - United States - Organizations (Source: washingtonpost.com - Health)
Extended Daylight Hours Influence Teens' Sleeping Patterns
In the spring, later sunset and extended daylight exposure delay bedtimes in teenagers, according to researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lighting Research Center (LRC). "Biologically, this increased exposure to early evening light in the spring delays the onset of nocturnal melatonin, a hormone that indicates to the body when it's nighttime," explains Mariana Figueiro, Ph.D., associate professor. "This extended exposure adds to the difficulties teens have falling asleep at a reasonable hour... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Ocular Sarcoidosis
Semin Respir Crit Care Med 2010; 31: 452-462DOI: 10.1055/s-0030-1262213ABSTRACTOcular disease occurs in approximately a third of sarcoidosis patients. The rate of disease varies around the world, with Japanese sarcoidosis patients having ocular disease in more than 70% of cases. If untreated, ocular disease can lead to permanent visual impairment, including blindness. The most common manifestation is uveitis, with anterior involvement often being self-limiting, whereas posterior involvement can be chronic. The diagnosis of ocular sarcoidosis in patients with known sarcoidosis usually requires a specific examination by an ophthalmologist. For patients presenting with uveitis of unknown etiology, criteria have been proposed for diagnosing ocular sarcoidosis. The treatment of ocular disease r...

Media Type: Atlas and Textbook (Hard Cover) Synopsis: Jerry and Carol Shields update their previous 3-volume series on ocular oncology with a textbook and atlas that has been consolidated into two volumes for a total of 66 chapters. Revisions come primarily in the form of expanded text and additional photographs including newer imaging modalities. The books cover tumors, both benign and malignant, and common and exceedingly rare. Chapters typically begin with an overview of the entity followed by tumor photographs, each with a caption, as well as diagnostic testing, histopathology, and some surgical photographs. Interspersed throughout are many invaluable clinical pearls. (Source: American Journal of Ophthalmology)
Sleep disorder may signal dementia, Parkinson's disease up to 50 years early
(American Academy of Neurology) A new study shows that a sleep disorder may be a sign of dementia or Parkinson's disease up to 50 years before the disorders are diagnosed. The research is published in the July 28, 2010, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. (Source: EurekAlert! - Social and Behavioral Science)
Spring light influences teen sleep
TROY, N.Y., July 27 (UPI) -- Long daylight hours in spring influence the sleeping patterns of teens, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., said. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute - Troy New York - New York - United States - Troy (Source: Health News - UPI.com)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Pioneering dementia study
A Scottish medical research company is leading a worldwide sleep study which could radically reduce the symptoms associated with dementia. (Source: Scotsman.com News - Health)
NHS quangos are to be cut in half
HPA and NPSA are to be abolished as part of swinging cutsRelated items from OnMedicaCare at Scottish GP practices is rated highlyDH commits to continue NHS funding of homeopathyNICE approval rate of treatments is more than 80%Not enough sleep boosts cardiovascular disease riskReport slams patient safety at hospital trusts (Source: OnMedica Latest News)
Treatment of Primary Sjogren Syndrome: A Systematic Review [Clinical Review]
Conclusions&nbsp; In primary Sj&ouml;gren syndrome, evidence from controlled trials suggests benefits for pilocarpine and cevimeline for sicca features and topical cyclosporine for moderate or severe dry eye. Anti&ndash;tumor necrosis factor agents have not shown clinical efficacy, and larger controlled trials are needed to establish the efficacy of rituximab. (Source: JAMA)
Do you know which of these will help you sleep?
A number of my apparently sleep-deprived friends and colleagues, upon learning I planned to write about foods that might help people sleep better, have told me they're eager to see what I come up with. Health - Sleep Disorders - Conditions and Diseases - United States - Organizations (Source: Wash Post Health)
Sir Frederick Warner
Engineer and leading authority on nuclear and chemical safetyThe chemical engineer Sir Frederick Warner, who has died aged 100, was internationally renowned for his pioneering work in building chemical plants and improving the health and safety conditions for workers in the chemical industry. His expertise in environmental impact, particularly of radiation, saw him lead the first international team into Chernobyl to assess the damage caused by the catastrophic reactor meltdown in 1986.Disturbed by the fact that 31 young Soviet soldiers and firefighters had died after exposure to high doses of radiation during the containment operation, he later assembled a group of 100 retired engineers and scientists ? Volunteers for Ionising Radiation ? who would be available to help during any futur...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
If You?re Laughing, You?re Living?Longer
Dear Health Conscious Reader, Do you want to hear the funniest joke in the world? If you do searches for the ?funniest joke in the world,? this is the most common winner for U.S. audiences? A couple of hunters are out in the woods when one of them grabs his chest, falls to the ground, and then lies there motionless. The other hunter calls 911. ?My friend won?t get up, and I think he?s dead! What should I do?? The operator, in a calm, soothing voice, says: ?Just take it easy. I can help. First, you have to make sure he?s dead.? There?s a silence? then the operator hears two shots. The hunter?s voice comes back on the line. ?Okay, what do I do next?? Now? I know jokes that I think are a lot funnier, but they?re a little too risqué to put in your letter. But...
Sleep Flees with Kids' Mental Health Issues
Insomnia significantly affects 29% of children seen by child psychiatrists, according to a national survey. (Source: MedPage Today Neurology)
Arrhythmia recurrence after ablation of atrial fibrillation: should we be concerned about sleep apnoea?
(Source: Europace)
Low efficacy of atrial fibrillation ablation in severe obstructive sleep apnoea patients
Conclusion In patients with AF ablation, the presence of severe OSA is an independent predictor for AF ablation failure. (Source: Europace)
Insomnia In Children Receiving Mental Health Treatment
A new survey of child psychiatrists indicates that insomnia is a major problem among children in mental health treatment and at least a quarter of these patients are given sleep medication. The results of the survey, conducted by Judith Owens, MD, a sleep expert with Hasbro Children's Hospital, and colleagues, suggests that management of insomnia in this population is a common practice, although the clinical approach varies widely. The study is published in the August 2010 edition of Sleep Medicine... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Review: Clock genes at the heart of depression
The rhythms of life are ever pervasive, touching almost every aspect of our lives. We are finely tuned to the cycle of light and dark, so that we normally sleep during the night and are active during the day. Physiological rhythms are, however, not just slaves to the solar day, but are actually generated endogenously within the suprachiasmatic nuclei in the hypothalamus and are entrained via the retina. The circadian timing system is organized hierarchically with the suprachiasmatic nuclei providing neural and/or hormonal cues to the various organ systems, allowing them to express their own rhythmic physiological output. There is now a substantial body of evidence emerging that disruption of rhythmicity through altered sleep/w...
Review: Restoring circadian rhythms: a new way to successfully manage depression
For many patients suffering from major depressive disorder, available treatments are unsatisfactory due to long delays before the onset of effects, low response rates, poor tolerability, and high recurrence rates. Evidence now suggests that major depressive disorder is a complex syndrome fed by multiple pathways and therefore that modulating serotonergic and noradrenergic neurotransmission, while important, is insufficient. To this effect, data have shown consistently over the last 50 years that patients suffering from depression experience a wide range of circadian rhythm disturbances, and that temporary remission of symptoms can be reached with chronotherapeutic interventions. Agomelatine, a melatonergic antidepressant with ...
Review: The antidepressant agomelatine improves the quality of life of depressed patients: implications for remission
One of the ongoing clinical challenges associated with the management of major depressive disorder is the fact that many patients do not achieve complete remission and even fewer patients remain in remission. Residual symptoms and poor treatment adherence are two of the main risk factors for relapse with current therapies. In order to face these challenges, clinicians need new treatment strategies that can provide more sustained, longer-term efficacy and adherence. Agomelatine, an innovative antidepressant, is a melatonergic MT1/MT2 agonist with 5HT2C receptor antagonist activity. Randomized, controlled studies have shown that agomelatine reduces depression symptoms and is well tolerated during short-term and long-term...
Review: The importance of early symptom relief in antidepressant treatment: focus on agomelatine
Antidepressants were traditionally considered to have delayed onset of action, and clinical opinion often stated that patients may not experience noticeable improvement for 4&mdash;6 weeks. Recent studies have shown, however, that antidepressants have more rapid onset of effect, within 1&mdash;2 weeks, and that this early response may be associated with later sustained response. Moreover, there is emerging evidence that some medications may have faster onset of therapeutic effect than others. The new antidepressant agomelatine, with its novel pharmacological profile as an agonist at melatonergic (MT1 and MT2) receptors and antagonist at 5-HT2C receptors, has in several studies produced earlier symptom improvement tha...
Tropheryma whipplei Bacteremia during Fever in Rural West Africa
Conclusions.?Our findings suggest that T. whipplei is an agent of unexplained cold season fever with cough in rural West Africa. (Source: Clinical Infectious Diseases Latest Issue)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
armodafinil (Nuvigil)
Title: armodafinil (Nuvigil)Category: MedicationsCreated: 7/27/2010 4:29:00 PMLast Editorial Review: 7/27/2010 4:29:10 PM (Source: MedicineNet Sleep General)
Health Tip: Taking a Plane Trip With Baby
Title: Health Tip: Taking a Plane Trip With BabyCategory: Health NewsCreated: 7/27/2010 8:10:00 AMLast Editorial Review: 7/27/2010 (Source: MedicineNet Sleep General)
Collagen crosslinking in pseudophakic bullous keratopathy
Ghanem et al. presented an interesting study of the effect of collagen crosslinking (CXL) on pseudophakic bullous keratopathy (PBK). Central corneal thickness (CCT), corneal transparency, as well as ocular pain symptoms improved significantly in all patients (n = 14) 1 month after CXL. However, 6 months later, mean corneal transparency and ocular pain symptoms were comparable to those before CXL. (Source: Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery)
Phacoemulsification through a circular polarizing filter using the birefringent and photoelastic characteristics of ocular tissues
This study was performed to determine (1) whether the birefringence and photoelasticity of ocular tissues permits improved visualization of the lens capsule as well as the vitreous and ophthalmic viscosurgical devices (OVDs), which are difficult to see because of their transparency; and (2) whether visualization of photoelastic stress-related fringes in the cornea can be helpful in minimizing corneal astigmatism during corneal incisions or suturing. We observed ocular tissues during phacoemulsification performed with an ophthalmic surgical microscope equipped with a circular polarizing filter. (Source: Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery)
Glistenings and surface light scattering in intraocular lenses
Glistenings are fluid-filled microvacuoles that form within the intraocular lens (IOL) optic when the IOL is in an aqueous environment. They are observed in all types of IOLs but have been mainly associated with hydrophobic acrylic IOLs. Experimental and clinical studies suggest the various hydrophobic acrylic IOLs on the market exhibit different tendencies toward glistenings. Factors influencing glistening formation include IOL material composition, manufacturing technique, packaging, associated conditions such as glaucoma or those leading to breakdown of the blood?aqueous barrier, as well as concurrent use of ocular medications. Although the impact of glistenings on postoperative visual function and the evolution of glistenings in the late postoperative period remain controversial, IOL...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Changes in anterior chamber depth and intraocular pressure after phacoemulsification in eyes with occludable angles
Purpose: To evaluate changes in anterior chamber depth (ACD) and intraocular pressure (IOP) after phacoemulsification in eyes with occludable angles and compare the results with those in eyes with normal open angles.Setting: Eye Clinic, Ipoh General Hospital, Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.Methods: Patients with nonglaucomatous eyes with open angles or with occludable angles were recruited. Ocular biometric measurements (ACD, axial length [AL], lens thickness and position) and IOP (tonometry) were performed preoperatively and 1 day and 1, 4, 9, and 12 weeks postoperatively.Results: The open-angle group and occludable-angle group each comprised 35 patients. The occludable-angle group had a shallower ACD, shorter AL, thicker and relatively anterior lens position, and higher IOP preoperatively; postop...
Effect of the angle of the operating microscope light beam on visual recovery after phacoemulsification: Randomized trial
Purpose: To evaluate differences in visual recovery after phacoemulsification with direct or tilted surgical microscope illumination using a macular photostress test.Setting: Western Eye Hospital, Imperial College Health Care National Health Service Trust, London, United Kingdom.Methods: This randomized double-masked controlled trial enrolled patients presenting to a daycare unit for single-eye cataract surgery. Inclusion criteria were no ocular pathology other than cataract, corneal keratometric astigmatism less than 1.50 diopters, intended target of emmetropia in the operated eye, and cataract grade 1 to 3 (Lens Opacification Classification System II). Exclusion criteria were an abnormal preoperative photostress test. Patients were randomized to have phacoemulsification with the operatin...
The slow-wave component of the interictal epileptiform EEG discharges
Summary: The interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs) consist of a fast component (FC; spike or sharp-wave) followed by a slow-wave component (SC). Our purpose was to assess the intra-individual variance, the diagnostic significance and the effect of sleep on the SC. Ninety-nine EEG recordings from 50 consecutive patients with IEDs were analysed. We measured the duration (ms) of the SC (SC-duration), while the amplitude of the SC was divided by the amplitude of the FC yielding a normalized value (SC/FC amplitude-ratio). Intra-individual, intra- and inter-recording coefficients of variation (CV) were calculated for the SC-duration and SC/FC amplitude-ratio. The correlation with the diagnosis, and the effect of sleep was analysed. The SC-duration and the SC/FC amplitude-ratio had low CV ( (...
Evolution of hemiplegic attacks and epileptic seizures in alternating hemiplegia of childhood
Summary: To delineate the evolution of non-epileptic and epileptic paroxysmal events in alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC), we reviewed clinical information of nine patients (4?40 years) with AHC. Paroxysmal abnormal ocular movements, head turning, and tonic, clonic, or myoclonic limb movements were the initial symptoms (birth?8m) in each patient. Ictal electroencephalography (EEG) of these episodes, as well as hemiplegic periods that accompanied these symptoms later in infancy showed unremarkable findings or generalized slow background activity. Presumptive epileptic seizures appeared at 2?16y in seven patients: generalized tonic, clonic, myoclonic, tonic?clonic, or complex partial seizures often accompanied by cyanosis or prolonged respiratory arrest. Ictal EEGs recorded i...
Comorbidity between epilepsy and sleep disorders
Summary: Despite being relatively common and potentially able to have clinical and pathophysiological consequences, the comorbidity between epilepsy and sleep disorders is poorly investigated in the literature and rarely taken into consideration by clinicians in general practice.There is increasing evidence that obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) coexists in epilepsy (in 10% of unselected adult epilepsy patients, 20% of children with epilepsy and up to 30% of drug-resistant epilepsy patients). A few lines of evidence suggest that continuous positive airway pressure treatment of OSA in epilepsy patients improves seizure control, cognitive performance and quality of life.Parasomnias and epileptic seizures can coexist in the same subject making the differential diagnosis of these conditions parti...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Sleep Dysfunction and Burning Mouth Syndrome
Nita Chainani-Wu, Chaitra Bhat, Erin Madden, Sol Silverman Jr. University of California, San Francisco (Source: Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology, and Endodontics)
Guiding Your Sleep While You?re Awake
Many therapists use behavioral interventions to help the waking patient toward having a mastery dream ? using the conscious mind to control the wild ways of the unconscious. (Source: NYT Health)
Our children aren't sleeping and we're medicating them, survey finds
A new survey of child psychiatrists indicates that insomnia is a major problem among children in mental health treatment and at least a quarter of these patients are given sleep medication. The results of the survey suggests that management of insomnia in this population is a common practice, although the clinical approach varies widely. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)
Medicating Children for Sleep Disorders
Our children aren't sleeping and we're medicating them - New study from Hasbro Children's Hospital finds wide array of medication common practice for insomnia in children receiving mental health treatment. (Source: Disabled World)
Short sleep duration may increase impaired fasting glucose risk
People who sleep for less than 6 hours per night have a three-fold increased risk for developing impaired fasting glucose compared with those who sleep for 6 to 8 hours per night, a US study suggests. (Source: MedWire News - Diabetes)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Planting the seeds for health
Fresh food to eat, a good night?s sleep and plenty of exercise are the secrets to a long and healthy life, says octogenarian author Ronnie Plant (Source: The Irish Times - Health)
The Allergy Mystery
House dust mites, those microscopic insects we unwittingly sleep with every night, are among the few known causes of asthma and allergic symptoms. But pesky mites alone can't explain why the prevalence of childhood allergies has risen worldwide over... (Source: OrlandoSentinel: Medical Research)
The long journey to the discovery of PARK2
Research into familial Parkinson's disease (PD) remained at a virtual standstill in Europe and the US for several decades until a re-challenge by Japanese neurologists regarding an autosomal recessive form of PD. In 1965, our research group at Nagoya University examined familial cases of early-onset parkinsonism characterized by autosomal recessive inheritance, diurnal fluctuation of symptoms (alleviation after sleep), foot dystonia, good response to medication, and benign course without dementia. An inborn error of metabolism in some dopamine-related pathway was suspected. The clinical study of four families with the disease, named as "early-onset parkinsonism with diurnal fluctuation (EPDF)", was published in Neurology in 1973. The pathological study of a case in 1993 revealed neuronal l...
Nocturnal sleeping habits of the Yunnan snub-nosed monkey in Xiangguqing, China
Weather, predation, and social organization are hypothesized to influence sleeping habits of nonhuman primates at night. To investigate how the Yunnan snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti) prepares for and behaves during cold nights in their harsh alpine forest habitat (above 3,000 m), we studied the sleeping habits of the 171 one-male units (OMU) in one group for 12 months at Xiangguqing in the Baimaxueshan Nature Reserve, China. It took 20.2 min from the time the study group entered a sleeping site until they fell asleep. This duration was consistent over seasons. On average, sleeping time was 11.5 hr per night over the year. Seasonal mean lengths of sleeping time varied significantly, however, and ranged from 10 to 13 hr per night, correlating with night length. Two sleeping styles we...
DH commits to continue NHS funding of homeopathy
Government rejects MPs call to end NHS funding of homeopathyRelated items from OnMedicaNICE approval rate of treatments is more than 80%Care at Scottish GP practices is rated highlyNHS quangos are to be cut in halfRegulator moves to quosh concerns about safety in NHSNot enough sleep boosts cardiovascular disease risk (Source: OnMedica Latest News)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Care at Scottish GP practices is rated highly
90% of patients rate overall primary care as ?good? or ?excellent?Related items from OnMedicaNHS quangos are to be cut in halfDH commits to continue NHS funding of homeopathyNICE approval rate of treatments is more than 80%Not enough sleep boosts cardiovascular disease riskReport slams patient safety at hospital trusts (Source: OnMedica Latest News)
Should Nightmares Have Happy Endings?
Therapy may help people who suffer from chronic nightmares learn how to turn bad dreams into good ones. But some experts wonder if changing your nightmares robs the waking mind of crucial information. (Source: NYT Health)
Should Nightmares Have Happy Endings?
Therapy may help people who suffer from chronic nightmares learn how to turn bad dreams into good ones. But some experts wonder if changing your nightmares robs the waking mind of crucial information. (Source: NYT)
Following a Script to Escape a Nightmare
Nightmares are increasingly being viewed as a distinct disorder, and researchers have empirical evidence that cognitive therapy can help reduce their frequency and intensity, or even eliminate them. (Source: NYT Health)
Animals lacking link protein have attenuated perineuronal nets and persistent plasticity
Chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans in the extracellular matrix restrict plasticity in the adult central nervous system and their digestion with chondroitinase reactivates plasticity. However the structures in the extracellular matrix that restrict plasticity are unknown. There are many changes in the extracellular matrix as critical periods for plasticity close, including changes in chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan core protein levels, changes in glycosaminoglycan sulphation and the appearance of dense chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan-containing perineuronal nets around many neurons. We show that formation of perineuronal nets is triggered by neuronal production of cartilage link protein Crtl1 (Hapln1), which is up-regulated in the visual cortex as perineuronal nets form during developme...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Sleep and Health
Source: HealthDay - Related MedlinePlus Page: Sleep Disorders (Source: MedlinePlus Health News)
What Is Sleep? How Much Sleep Do I Need?
Sleep is a state when our senses and motor activity are relatively suspended; there is total or partial unconsciousness, and all voluntary muscles are inactive. Sleep is more reversible than hibernation or coma, but responds less to stimuli than quiet wakefulness. Sleep is the body's rest cycle. Sleep is a heightened anabolic state - a period when our bodies are producing new bone, muscular and nervous tissue; a period when growth and repairs occur. Most animals sleep, including mammals (humans are mammals), birds, a significant number of reptiles, amphibians, and fish... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Video: Curing A Sleepwalking Child
Sleepwalking at night is normal, but it's a challenge for almost every parent. Early Show Contributor Shannon Eis shared some tips and handy products designed to help kids sleep through the night. (Source: Health News: CBSNews.com)
Video: Curing A Sleepwalking Child
Sleepwalking at night is normal, but it's a challenge for almost every parent. Early Show Contributor Shannon Eis shared some tips and handy products designed to help kids sleep through the night. (Source: Health News: CBSNews.com)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Video: Curing A Sleepwalking Child
Sleepwalking at night is normal, but it's a challenge for almost every parent. Early Show Contributor Shannon Eis shared some tips and handy products designed to help kids sleep through the night. (Source: Health News: CBSNews.com)
Video: Curing A Sleepwalking Child
Sleepwalking at night is normal, but it's a challenge for almost every parent. Early Show Contributor Shannon Eis shared some tips and handy products designed to help kids sleep through the night. (Source: Health News: CBSNews.com)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
FTC Pushed Watson Subpoena, Denies Info Disclosure
From Associated Press (July 23, 2010) NEW YORK -- The Federal Trade Commission has accused Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. of delaying an investigation into a potential "pay-for-delay" deal on a generic sleep disorder drug. On Thursday, the FTC again... (Source: Drugs.com - Pharma News)
Influence of medications and diagnoses on fall risk in psychiatric inpatients.
Conclusion Alpha-blockers, nonbenzodiazepine sleep aids, benzodiazepines, H(2)-blockers, lithium, atypical antipsychotics, atypical antidepressants, anticonvulsants and mood stabilizers, conventional anti-psychotics, laxatives and stool softeners, and dementia and Alzheimer's disease were significant predictors of inpatient falls in a psychiatric population. PMID: 20651318 [PubMed - in process] (Source: American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy : AJHP)
Health Tip: Learn to Relax
Title: Health Tip: Learn to RelaxCategory: Health NewsCreated: 7/26/2010 8:10:00 AMLast Editorial Review: 7/26/2010 (Source: MedicineNet Sleep General)
Our children aren't sleeping and we're medicating them
(Lifespan) A new survey of child psychiatrists indicates that insomnia is a major problem among children in mental health treatment and at least a quarter of these patients are given sleep medication. The results of the survey, conducted by Judith Owens, M.D., of Hasbro Children's Hospital, suggests that management of insomnia in this population is a common practice, although the clinical approach varies widely. The study appears in the August 2010 edition of Sleep Medicine. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)
Is it Wise to Divorce Without an Attorney?
The current economy is the worst most of us have seen in our lifetime. As a side effect of the down economy, many people who are in unhappy marriages are finding creative ways to manage.Some are choosing to postpone their dissolution until there is some equity in the house, or the retirement account grows, or one or both spouses return to work. Some couples choose to remain occupants of the same house but sleep in separate bedrooms. I know of one couple who share "occupancy" of the house but one spouse works during the day and comes home in the evening while the other works a night shift. This kind of set up is often a necessary when a couple has younger children.Other couples, more determined (or desperate) to get through the dissolution process, are reverting to "self-representation." Se...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
EEG Protocol Results Found Similar in Epilepsy Diagnosis
For diagnosing epilepsy in children with new-onset seizures, early electroencephalography or later sleep-deprived electroencephalography provide similar results and diagnostic utility, according to a study published online July 12 in the Archives of Neurology. (Source: Modern Medicine)
Beyond Hollywood
A psychologist might say that my life has been heavily, if not unduly, influenced by the movies. Born into a generation before the advent of television, and one still suffering the effects of the Great Depression, films were our main source of entertainment. Many of the movies of that era were romantic comedies with a simple plot: boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl, boy-gets-girl, and they live happily ever after. My plays have some of the same qualities, being "poignant and funny," in the words of one theater critic. Could those early movies have left more of an impression than I thought?In fact, I grew up on the movies. My earliest wish, as recorded by my mother in my baby book, was to be a "nice little girl like Shirley Temple." My most prized possession was a Shirley Temple doll. I longed ...
New Parents Have 6 Months Sleep Deficit During First 24 Months Of Baby's Life
A survey reveals that parents lose an average of six months' sleep during the first 24 months of their child's life. Approximately 10% of parents manage to get just two-and-a-half hours continuous sleep each night, the Silentnight survey found. Over 60% of parents with babies aged less than 24 months get no more than three-and-a-quarter hours sleep each night. Silentnight sleep expert, Iftikhar Mirza, said: An hour here and there doesn't negate sleep debt. Mirza advises parents to "take regular, gentle exercise to release endorphins, which should lower the risk of mood swings... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Daily sleep, weekly working hours, and risk of work-related injury: U.S. National Health Interview Survey (2004-2008). - Lombardi DA, Folkard S, Willetts JL, Smith GS.
The impact on health and safety of the combination of chronic sleep deficits and extended working hours has received worldwide attention. Using the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), an in-person household survey using a multistage, stratified, clust... (Source: SafetyLit: All (Unduplicated))
19th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, San Antonio, Texas, USA, 4?6 June 2010
Content Type Journal ArticleCategory AbstractsDOI 10.1007/s11325-010-0390-z Journal Sleep and BreathingOnline ISSN 1522-1709Print ISSN 1520-9512 (Source: Sleep and Breathing)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Antioxidant N-Acetyl-Cysteine Protects Retinal Pigmented Epithelial Cells from Long-Term Hypoxia Changes in Gene Expression
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Infant Deaths and Bed Sharing
It has long been thought that healthy babies who die suddenly and unexpectedly during sleep are victims of a mysterious condition called SIDS -- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. But what researchers in Minnesota and around the country are beginning to find is that some of these SIDS deaths - perhaps even a good share of them - may be caused by problems that occur when babies sleep in the same bed .... (Source: Sound Medicine)
Ocular involvement in patients with primary CNS lymphoma
Abstract&nbsp;&nbsp;To describe the demographics, clinical characteristics, and treatment outcomes in patients with primary CNS lymphoma (PCNSL) with ocular involvement. A retrospective chart review was conducted on 61 patients who were diagnosed with PCNSL from January 2000 to October 2008 at the Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea. Among 46 patients who underwent ophthalmologic examination, 13 (28%) showed intraocular involvement. Mean age at diagnosis was 52.8&nbsp;years, and 54% of patients were female. Diagnosis of PCNSL was made by vitrectomy (1 patient) or brain biopsy and/or CSF cytology (12 patients). In 4 (31%) patients, ocular symptoms preceded CNS symptoms. The most common ocular symptom was decreased visual acuity. Nine patients showed bilateral involvement. Intraocular fi...
Tics status: a movement disorder emergency
Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Letter to the EditorsDOI 10.1007/s00415-010-5680-7Authors Norbert Kovacs, University of Pecs Department of Neurology Ret utca 2 Pecs 7623 HungaryRobert Herold, University of Pecs Department of Psychiatry Pecs HungaryJozsef Janszky, University of Pecs Department of Neurology Ret utca 2 Pecs 7623 HungarySamuel Komoly, University of Pecs Department of Neurology Ret utca 2 Pecs 7623 HungaryFerenc Nagy, University of Pecs Department of Neurology Ret utca 2 Pecs 7623 Hungary Journal Journal of NeurologyOnline ISSN 1432-1459Print ISSN 0340-5354 (Source: Journal of Neurology)
Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Chronic Opioid Use
We describe sleep-disordered breathing and its subsequent treatment in a group of obstructive sleep apneic patients on chronic opioid therapy. Clinical evaluation followed by diagnostic overnight polysomnogram was performed in subjects on chronic opioid therapy who met the study criteria. All subjects had an initial CPAP titration followed by a repeat clinical evaluation. Subjects with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI)&nbsp;?&nbsp;5 continued to report symptoms and had follow-up titration with bilevel positive therapy; then bilevel positive-pressure therapy with a back-up rate was then performed. Age-, sex-, and disease-severity-matched obstructive sleep apnea patients served as controls. Forty-four study participants, including a large group of women (50%), and 44 controls were enroll...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Secondary Ocular Hypertension After Intravitreal Injection with 2?mg or 4?mg of Triamcinolone in Retinal Vein Occlusion
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Patient Selection Criteria for Pilot Studies on Amelioration of Non-Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Persistent Photopsia Following Course of Oral Voriconazole
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Brimonidine Hypersensitivity when Switching Between 0.2% and 0.15% Formulations
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Efficacy in Patients with Dry Eye After Treatment with a New Lubricant Eye Drop Formulation
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Efficacy of Topical N-Acetylcysteine in the Treatment of Meibomian Gland Dysfunction
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Determination of Mangiferin in Rat Eyes and Pharmacokinetic Study in Plasma After Oral Administration of Mangiferin-Hydroxypropyl-Beta-Cyclodextrin Inclusion
Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Time of Day Effects on Neurobehavioral Performance During Chronic Sleep Restriction
(Source: Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine)
Ocular pulse amplitude and associated glaucomatous risk factors in a healthy Hispanic population
This study evaluates OPA and factors related to it in a healthy, Hispanic population.Methods: Refractive error, corneal curvature, Goldmann applanation tonometry (GAT), dynamic contour tonometry (DCT), OPA, axial length, and central corneal thickness (CCT) measurements were obtained on 104 Hispanic subjects recruited from the community.Results: OPA ranged from 0.7 to 4.7 mmHg (mean, 2.1 ± 0.8 mmHg) and showed a significant correlation with refractive error, axial length, GAT, and DCT (r=0.250, -0.358, 0.460, 0.378; P=0.011, (Source: Optometry - Journal of the American Optometric Association)
[Hypnopompic sleep paralysis with hallucinations and exploding brain syndrome: an infrequent association.]
Authors: Perez-Perez H, Perez-Lorensu PJ, de Juan-Hernandez P PMID: 20648470 [PubMed - in process] (Source: Revista de Neurologia)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
A fitful night's sleep.
Authors: Catarino CB, Ng G, Walker MC, Sander JW PMID: 20647531 [PubMed - in process] (Source: Practical Neurology)
'Today Show' Discusses If Dreams Can Be Manipulated
In an interesting piece on The Today Show, a psychologist discusses if dreams can be manipulated, as occurs in the movie Inception. There are a few concepts presented, including lucid dreaming, influencing the dreams of others or even shared dreaming, as well as dream incubation. Lucid dreaming is the ability to recognize you are dreaming and then take control of the dream to accomplish what you want. This may involve problem solving or just exploring new experiences. Our dreams can become influenced by external stimuli, but typically not to the extent that occurs in Inception. Rather, external cues (especially noises in the sleep environment) often become incorporated into our dream state. For example, a persistent alarm clock noise may become a fire alarm in a dream. This likely repres...
Obtaining Status, Rather Than Enforcing Dominance Over Dogs: A Positive Program
My previous, blog, "Canine Dominance: Is the Concept of the Alpha Dog Valid?" seems to have aroused much interest and discussion. For example Lee Charles Kelly wrote a blog in response called "Coren's Turnaround: How the Pack Leader Model of Dog Training Is Flawed." I don't know why a "turnaround" is all that bad. We scientists are always reevaluating our theories in the light of new data. To slavishly cling to our old views when new scientific findings suggest that they are wrong would be nonprofessional and virtually a breach of our duty to advance understanding. After all, wasn't it wolf researcher David Mech's reconsideration of the concept of the alpha wolf which triggered this latest advance in our understanding of canine behavior?. Other people have worried about how one might deal ...
Identification of a gene essential to newborn babies' first breath
How do mammals prepare themselves in utero for a radical modification to their respiration at the time of birth, when they move abruptly from an aquatic medium to air? Researchers have identified a gene in the mouse that is essential to respiration and consequently to survival at birth. This work opens the way to better understanding respiratory disorders in humans, which can range from sleep apnea to sudden infant death syndrome. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)
'Sleep control' cells allow blind mice to see
Mice lacking rod and cone cells can still navigate mazes. They must be using a third light receptor previously thought to have no role in vision (Source: New Scientist - Health)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Ocular Adnexal Lymphoma: Diffusion-weighted MR Imaging for Differential Diagnosis and Therapeutic Monitoring [Neuroradiology]
Apparent diffusion coefficients provided an accurate noninvasive quantitative index for differentiation of ocular adnexal lymphomas from other orbital mass lesions and a surrogate biomarker of tumor response to therapy. (Source: Radiology)
The allergy mystery
House dust mites, those microscopic insects we unwittingly sleep with every night, are among the few known causes of asthma and allergic symptoms. But pesky mites alone can't explain why the prevalence of childhood allergies has risen worldwide over... (Source: OrlandoSentinel: Medical Research)
Goldmann applanation tonometry and dynamic contour tonometry in eyes with elevated intraocular pressure (IOP): comparison in the same eyes after subsequent medical normalization of IOP
Conclusion&nbsp;&nbsp;DCT-IOP, which is higher than GAT-IOP in normotensive eyes, is lower in eyes with GAT-IOP exceeding 30&nbsp;mmHg. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory GlaucomaDOI 10.1007/s00417-010-1462-2Authors Chungkwon Yoo, Korea University College of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology Seoul KoreaYoung Sub Eom, Korea University College of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology Seoul KoreaYong Yeon Kim, Korea University College of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology Seoul Korea Journal Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental OphthalmologyOnline ISSN 1435-702XPrint ISSN 0721-832X (Source: Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology)
Body height and ocular dimensions in the adult population in rural central india. The Central India Eye and Medical Study
Conclusions&nbsp;&nbsp;In the rural population of Central India without urbanization-associated myopization, body height and size of the eye were associated with each other: taller subjects had larger eyes with a flatter cornea. An increase in body height per 10&nbsp;cm was associated with an increase in anterior chamber depth by 1% and an increase in vitreous cavity length by 1%. Subjects with a higher body mass index had shorter eyes, flatter and thicker corneas, and thicker lenses. Taller subjects and subjects with a higher BMI were more hyperopic. Since the occurrence of some ocular diseases depends on eye size and refractive error, the results may be helpful for screening examinations and for elucidating pathogenic associations. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Misce...
Surgical Treatment of Morbid Obesity: Mid-term Outcomes of the Laparoscopic Ileal Interposition Associated to a Sleeve Gastrectomy in 120 Patients
Abstract&nbsp;&nbsp;The aim of this study was to evaluate the mid-term outcomes of the laparoscopic ileal interposition associated to a sleeve gastrectomy (LII-SG) for the treatment of morbid obesity. The procedure was performed in 120 patients: 71 women and 49 men with mean age of 41.4&nbsp;years. Mean body mass index (BMI) was 43.4?±?4.2&nbsp;kg/m2. Patients had to meet requirements of the 1991 NIH conference criteria for bariatric operations. Associated comorbidities were observed in all patients, including dyslipidemia in 51.7%, hypertension in 35.8%, type 2 diabetes in 15.8%, degenerative joint disease in 55%, gastroesophageal reflux disease in 36.7%, sleep apnea in 10%, and cardiovascular problems in 5.8%. Mean follow-up was 38.4?±?10.2&nbsp;months, range 25.2?61.1. ...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Consistency and reliability of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Mini-Sleep Questionnaire in undergraduate students
Conclusions&nbsp;&nbsp;The MSQ-BR has adequate internal consistency and test?retest reliability. The MSQ-BR insomnia has adequate internal consistency for use as a separate application. However, the MSQ-BR hypersomnia demonstrated only moderate internal consistency for use as a separate application. Our intention was not to introduce modifications to the questionnaire, but to evaluate the reliability of total MSQ-BR and its subscales. Others studies are needed to assess the consistency of MSQ compared to other instruments. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Original ArticleDOI 10.1007/s11325-010-0392-xAuthors Asdrubal Falavigna, University of Caxias do Sul Rua General Arcy da Rocha Nóbrega, 401/602 Caxias do Sul RS Brazil CEP: 95040-290Márcio Luciano de Souza Bezerra, R...
Persistence on Prostaglandin Ocular Hypotensive Therapy: an Assessment Using Medication Possession and Days Covered on Therapy
Is medication persistence in glaucoma the right treatment approach? BMC Ophthalmology (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
European Medicines Agency Recommends Restricting The Use Of Modafinil
The European Medicines Agency has recommended restricting the use of modafinil-containing medicines. The medicine should only be used to treat sleepiness associated with narcolepsy. Doctors and patients should no longer use the medicine for the treatment of idiopathic hypersomnia, excessive sleepiness associated with obstructive sleep apnoea and chronic shift work sleep disorder. Modafinil is a wakefulness promoting agent, currently licensed in 21 countries in Europe. They are available under the following invented names: Modasomil, Modiodal, Provigil and Vigil, and as generic medicines... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Somaxon Pharmaceuticals Announces Acceptance Of Phase 3 Clinical Trial Data For Publication In Sleep And Sleep Medicine
Somaxon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: SOMX), a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the in-licensing, development and commercialization of proprietary branded pharmaceutical products and late-stage product candidates for the treatment of diseases and disorders in the central nervous system therapeutic area, announced that detailed results from two Phase 3 clinical trials of the company's product Silenor® (doxepin) have been accepted for publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Atypical antipsychotics associated with sleep apnoea
(Source: Reactions)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Acetazolamide: Reduced ocular motility, chemosis and oedema following inadvertent peribulbar administration: case report
(Source: Reactions)
Atorvastatin/simvastatin: Muscle weakness in a patient with myasthenia gravis: case report
(Source: Reactions)
Sleep apnea associated with HF and CHD in men
Men with obstructive sleep apnea have a greater risk for heart failure and coronary heart disease than women with the breathing disorder, a US study reports. (Source: MedWire News - Cardiology)
PACE - The first placebo controlled trial of paracetamol for acute low back pain: design of a randomised controlled trial.
This study aims to determine whether 4 g of paracetamol daily (in divided doses) results in a more rapid recovery from acute LBP than placebo. A secondary aim is to determine if ingesting paracetamol in a time-contingent manner is more effective than paracetamol taken when required (PRN) for recovery from acute LBP. Methods: The study is a randomised double dummy placebo controlled trial. 1650 care seeking people with significant acute LBP will be recruited. All participants will receive advice to stay active and will be randomised to 1 of 3 treatment groups: time-contingent paracetamol dose regimen (plus placebo PRN paracetamol), PRN paracetamol (plus placebo time-contingent paracetamol) or a double placebo study arm. The primary outcome will be time (days) to recovery from pain recorded ...
Mydriatic Effect of Ocular Decongestants Studied by Pupillographγ
Ophthalmologica 1994;208:243–246 (DOI:10.1159/000310499) (Source: Ophthalmologica)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Lens opacity and refractive influences on the measurement of retinal vascular fractal dimension
Conclusion: Ocular media opacity independently influenced retinal vascular Df measurement, but we found no evidence supporting any refractive axial magnification effect on this measure. Myopic refraction [le][minus]4D was associated with a reduction in Df, suggesting rarefaction of retinal vasculature associated with high myopia. (Source: Acta Ophthalmologica)
Development of the EXAcerbations of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Tool (EXACT): A Patient-Reported Outcome (PRO) Measure
Conclusions: Qualitative data from patients and input from experts formed the basis of the EXACT's structure and item pool, ready for empirically based item reduction and reliability and validity testing. (Source: Value in Health)
[siRNA in macular degeneration.]
Authors: Callizo J, Agostini HT To date aptamers, recombinant antibodies and antibody fragments which interfere specifically in cellular signal transmission by binding transmitters before a signal can be triggered, are the approved therapeutics agents for treatment of ocular angiogenesis. These substances achieve an effective but in most cases temporary inhibition of vascular growth and permeability. Other alternatives to inhibit cellular communication, such as tyrosine kinase inhibition or especially post-transcriptional gene silencing by degradation of messenger RNA (mRNA) induced by small interfering RNA (siRNA) are being evaluated in ongoing studies. In this overview issues related to mechanisms and molecule design, as well as clinical applications and the first clinical experience...
Endothelial Dysfunction in the Microcirculation of Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
CONCLUSIONS: This is the first direct evaluation of the microcirculation in OSA. OSA patients with low cardiovascular risk status had increased oxidant production in the microcirculation and endothelial dysfunction; both of which improved with treatment. eNOS transcription decreased with treatment. PMID: 20656942 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] (Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine)
Sleep Apnea Testing and Outcomes in a Large Cohort of Medicare Beneficiaries with Newly Diagnosed Heart Failure.
CONCLUSIONS: In Medicare beneficiaries with HF, comorbid SA is most often not tested and consequently subjects are under-diagnosed and not treated. Meanwhile, in the few subjects in whom a diagnosis of SA is established and treatment is executed, survival improves significantly. These results support the importance of SA testing and treatment for newly diagnosed HF patients. PMID: 20656940 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] (Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Use of Cephalon's Provigil could be limited in Europe
NEW YORK (Reuters) - European health regulators recommended on Thursday restricting the use of Cephalon's sleep disorder drug Provigil for treating narcolepsy only, over concerns that risks may outweigh the benefits of the medicine in other uses. (Source: Reuters: Health)
Concurrent Associations among Sleep Problems, Indicators of Inadequate Sleep, Psychopathology, and Shared Risk Factors in a Population-based Sample of Healthy Ontario Children
Conclusions&nbsp;Relations among sleep problems, indicators of inadequate sleep, and psychopathology are complex; accounting for potential confounding variables and considering sleep variables separately may clarify these relations. (Source: Journal of Pediatric Psychology)
Parental stress is associated with poor sleep quality in parents caring for children with developmental disabilities
Conclusions&nbsp;Parental stress is associated with poor sleep quality in parents of children with developmental disabilities. The monitoring and management of sleep issues in these parental caregivers should be a priority for health professionals. (Source: Journal of Pediatric Psychology)
Nimodipine Enhancement of {alpha}2 Adrenergic Modulation of NMDA Receptor via a Mechanism Independent of Ca2+ Channel Blocking [Physiology and Pharmacology]
Nimodipine, an L-type Ca2+ channel blocker with a number of ocular beneficial effects in glaucoma patients and retinal disease models, is shown in this study to enhance 2 receptor signaling independently of its classic L-type Ca2+ channel-blocking action. (Source: Investigative Ophthalmology)
Inhibition by Tranilast of the Cytokine-Induced Expression of Chemokines and the Adhesion Molecule VCAM-1 in Human Corneal Fibroblasts [Cornea]
In this study, the authors suggest that tranilast, an antiallergy drug, might suppress ocular allergic inflammation in part through direct action on corneal fibroblasts by inhibiting the cytokine-induced expression of chemokines, cytokines, and adhesion molecule. (Source: Investigative Ophthalmology)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Cold-Sensitive Corneal Afferents Respond to a Variety of Ocular Stimuli Central to Tear Production: Implications for Dry Eye Disease [Cornea]
Innocuous "cold" cornea afferents were excited by the ocular stimuli (drying, cooling, evaporation, and hyperosmolar stress of the cornea) that normally produce tears. Dysfunction of these corneal afferents may be responsible for some forms of dry eye. (Source: Investigative Ophthalmology)
In Vivo Evaluation of Superior Limbic Keratoconjunctivitis Using Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy and Conjunctival Impression Cytology [Cornea]
Confocal microscopy may serve as a tool of in vivo cytology in which N/C ratio and inflammatory cell density appear to be two new promising parameters for describing the ocular surface health status of patients with superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis. (Source: Investigative Ophthalmology)
Effect of Myopia on the Thickness of the Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Measured by Cirrus HD Optical Coherence Tomography [Glaucoma]
In myopic subjects, the RNFL thickness measured by Cirrus OCT may be less than the actual thickness, owing to ocular magnification. (Source: Investigative Ophthalmology)
Cortical Call Out: The Brain's Electric Field Creates a Feedback Loop That Synchronizes Neural Activity
The rhythmic electric fields generated by the brain during deep sleep and other periods of intensely coordinated neural activity could amplify and synchronize actions along the same neural networks that initially created those fields, according to a new study. The finding indicates that the brain's electric fields are not just passive by-products of neural activity--they might provide feedback that regulates how the brain functions, especially during deep, or slow-wave, sleep. Although similar ideas have been considered for decades, this is the first direct evidence that the electric fields generated by the cerebral cortex change the behavior of the neurons that engender them. [More] (Source: Scientific American - Official RSS Feed)
NKT cells are necessary for maximal expression of allergic conjunctivitis1
Allergic conjunctivitis (AC) is elicited by immediate hypersensitivity responses to environmental agents. It is initiated by a Th2-dominated immune response that is characterized by production of IgE antibodies and eosinophilic infiltration. By using an experimental mouse model of AC induced by short ragweed (SRW) pollen, we show that sensitized J18&ndash;/&ndash; mice, which lack type I NKT cells, and CD1d&ndash;/&ndash; mice, which lack type I and type II NKT cells, exhibited a decrease in tearing, lid edema, conjunctival edema and vasodilatation and eosinophil infiltration into the conjunctiva when compared with wild-type (WT) mice in both Th1- and Th2-prone hosts (C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice, respectively). This demonstrates that NKT cells are needed for both the early and late phases of A...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Identifying patterns in cortisol secretion in an older population. Findings from the Whitehall II study
In conclusion, two patterns of cortisol secretion occur in middle aged men and women. Raised pattern of secretion, which occurs in 27% of our participants is associated with demographic variables, adverse health behaviours, psychosocial environment and impaired physical functioning. (Source: Psychoneuroendocrinology)
Associations of cortisol with posttraumatic stress symptoms and negative life events: A study of police officers and firefighters
Summary: Given the inconsistent associations of cortisol with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), analysis of basal functioning of the hypothalamic?pituitary?adrenal (HPA) axis in subjects frequently exposed to trauma and critical incidents with a range of PTSD symptomatology, may be valuable. In an epidemiological sample of 1880 police officers and firefighters, associations of salivary cortisol with PTSD, negative life events (NLE) and exposure to a major air disaster more than 8 years earlier, was explored. Probable PTSD was unrelated to cortisol level while past (>8 years earlier) and more recently experienced NLE were associated with lower cortisol levels even after adjustment for confounders. Disaster exposure interacted significantly with PTSD symptoms on cortisol level. In th...
Sleep and epilepsy in neonates
Abstract: Background and objective: In clinical practice, the association between sleep and epilepsy has been increasingly observed in adults and during childhood. The aim of this article is to verify the relationship between sleep and epilepsy in the neonatal period in order to identify evidence and mechanisms to explain how epilepsy or neonatal seizures might disrupt sleep and how sleep might influence seizure occurrence and epilepsy during this age span.Methods: Literature review with search of PubMed database using the key words neonatal seizures and sleep.Results and conclusion: The complex processes of cortical maturation are closely related to the regulation of sleep?wakefulness cycles. Sleep regulation in the context of neonatal seizures is frequently abnormal, and these alterati...
Sleep and epilepsy in children and adolescents
Abstract: Epilepsy and sleep disorders are considered by many to be common bedfellows. Several sleep phenomena may occur during nighttime taking a wide variety of forms and which can mimic seizures. Although most seizure sub-types have the potential to occur during sleep or wakefulness, sleep has a well-documented and strong association with specific epilepsy syndromes. Seizures in sleep also tend to occur during lighter stages of non-REM (NREM) sleep. The neurophysiologic process involved in the deepening of NREM sleep may also facilitate both seizures and IEDs. Epilepsy per se and/or seizures themselves promote sleep disruption and significantly affect the quality, quantity, and architecture of sleep. There are many causes of sleep disruption in patients with epilepsy, including inadequa...
The role of cognitive?behavioral therapy in behavioral childhood insomnia
Abstract: Behavioral insomnia is a very common problem throughout childhood. It has negative impact on children and their families and can persist for many years if not treated. Interventions based on cognitive?behavioral therapy (CBT) principles have mainly focused on withdrawing excessive parental bedtime involvement and helping children develop self-soothing strategies for falling asleep and resuming sleep during the night. With young children, these interventions are mostly based on training and modifying parental behaviors. Changing parental sleep-related expectations, beliefs and perceptions is an important component in these interventions. With older children and adolescents, more versatile interventions exist and they include additional components of CBT including relaxation and ...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Use of pharmacotherapy for insomnia in child psychiatry practice: A national survey
Conclusions: Insomnia is a significant clinical problem in children treated by child psychiatrists for a variety of behavioral, neurodevelopmental, and psychiatric conditions. Management with a broad array of psychotropic medications is common and indicates a highly variable clinical approach to insomnia in this pediatric population. (Source: Sleep Medicine)
Apnea of prematurity: What can observational studies tell us about pathophysiology?
Abstract: Apnea of prematurity (AOP) is a developmental sleep disorder which is yet to be completely understood. Although there is some evidence of brainstem immaturity, there is nothing to suggest that infants with AOP have gross deficits in respiratory control. It appears, however, that the early (and frequent) occurrence of hypoxemia during apnea in preterm infants is related to their low expiratory lung volume, which falls even further during apnea, while the accompanying bradycardia results from this combination of apnea and hypoxemia. Feeding is an important trigger for AOP. While hypoxemia during feeding is most likely related to an immature coordination between sucking, swallowing and breathing and potentially also to an immature laryngeal chemoreflex, hypoxemia after feeding may b...
New approaches to the diagnosis of sleep-disordered breathing in children
Abstract: Sleep-disordered breathing in general and particularly, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) are highly prevalent conditions in children. Current diagnostic approaches range from exclusively using clinical presentation and physical examination to the current ?Gold Standard? of overnight polysomnography (NPSG). But while it is clear that the former is fraught with major limitations, the latter is also associated with significant obstacles, such as relative unavailability of appropriately equipped sleep laboratories and trained personnel, the labor intensive nature of NPSG and its inconvenience, and, of course, the high cost of the procedure. These limitations are detrimental to timely diagnosis and treatment. Novel approaches to the evaluation of community-based and clinica...
Autonomic alterations and endothelial dysfunction in pediatric obstructive sleep apnea
Abstract: The cardiovascular consequences of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) in children have started to emerge over the last decade. It is clear that the respiratory and sleep alterations that characterize this relatively prevalent condition induce substantial alterations in autonomic nervous system control, ultimately generating high sympathetic outflow and reactivity that reflect an imbalance between sympatho-excitatory and vagal inhibitory inputs. In addition to these important consequences, the constitutive elements of OSAS also elicit a rather extensive activation of systemic inflammatory pathways that in turn pose substantial risk to the integrity and functional homeostasis of the endothelial network. The complex interactions between the multiple injury-associated pathways r...
Ambulatory blood pressure before and after adenotonsillectomy in children with obstructive sleep apnea
Conclusion: In the current cohort of OSA children, 44% were cured of OSA and a significant decrease in overall diastolic blood pressure load in 24-h ambulatory blood pressure was achieved after adenotonsillectomy for children with OSA. But hypertension may persist or even occur in those previously normotensive children despite the improvement in AHI. Persistence of OSA may be a risk factor and further study is required. Cure of OSA should not be assumed after AT and follow-up PSG should be performed together with 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. In light of the current findings, long term study of the blood pressure is warranted for children with OSA. (Source: Sleep Medicine)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Families with sleepwalking
Conclusion: All of our subjects with parasomnias presented with familial traits considered as risk factors for SDB. These anatomical risk factors are present at birth and even subtle SDB can lead to sleep disruption and instability of NREM sleep. The question raised is: are factors leading to chronic sleep disruption the familial traits responsible for familial sleepwalking? (Source: Sleep Medicine)
Editorial Board
(Source: Sleep Medicine)
The importance of sleep for children?s well being
Recent research on the importance of sleep for well being, learning and mental development proves that good sleep in infancy and childhood is a matter of preventive health measures aiming at ensuring a healthy life into adulthood. We all know sleep is important for optimal functioning in different moments of life, and, during development, insufficient sleep determines neurobehavioral and cognitive problems that reduce the quality of life of the child and the entire family. (Source: Sleep Medicine)
The carrier of the CAP concept and practice in sleep medicine
Bruni and colleagues have written a review entitled ?Cyclic Alternating Pattern: A window into pediatric sleep? in this special issue of Sleep Medicine tracing ?the birth of the ?Cyclic Alternating Pattern? (CAP) to the manuscript published in Sleep in 1985? . In this milestone article Terzano and co-workers started to explore the microstructure of sleep, the ?underground world? beyond the traditional Rechtschaffen?Kales scoring system, and this microstructural dynamic approach has become accepted more and more during the last 20years. (Source: Sleep Medicine)
Arousal from sleep mechanisms in infants
Abstract: Arousals from sleep allow sleep to continue in the face of stimuli that normally elicit responses during wakefulness and also permit awakening. Such an adaptive mechanism implies that any malfunction may have clinical importance. Inadequate control of arousal in infants and children is associated with a variety of sleep-related problems. An excessive propensity to arouse from sleep favors the development of repeated sleep disruptions and insomnia, with impairment of daytime alertness and performance. A lack of an adequate arousal response to a noxious nocturnal stimulus reduces an infant?s chances of autoresuscitation, and thus survival, increasing the risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The study of arousability is complicated by many factors including the definition...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Cardiovascular control during sleep in infants: Implications for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Abstract: In infants the cardiorespiratory system undergoes significant functional maturation after birth and these changes are sleep-state dependent. Given the immaturity of these systems it is not surprising that infants are at risk of cardiorespiratory instability, especially during sleep. A failure of cardiovascular control mechanisms in particular is believed to play a role in the final event of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The ?triple risk model? describes SIDS as an event that results from the intersection of three overlapping factors: (1) a vulnerable infant, (2) a critical development period in homeostatic control, and (3) an exogenous stressor. This review summarises normal development of cardiovascular control during sleep in infants and describes the association of ...
Approaches to the assessment of arousals and sleep disturbance in children
Abstract: Childhood arousals, awakenings, and sleep disturbances during the night are common problems for both patients and their families. Additionally, inadequate sleep may contribute to daytime sleepiness, behavioral problems, and other important consequences of pediatric sleep disorders. Arousals, awakenings, and sleep disturbances can be quantified by routine polysomnography, and arousal scoring is generally performed as part of the standard polysomnogram. Here, we review current approaches to quantification of arousals and sleep disturbances and examine outcomes that have been associated with these measures. Initial data suggest that computer-assisted identification of non-visible arousals, cyclic alternating patterns, or respiratory cycle-related EEG changes may complement what can ...
Cyclic alternating pattern: A window into pediatric sleep
Abstract: Cyclic alternating pattern (CAP) has now been studied in different age groups of normal infants and children, and it is clear that it shows dramatic changes with age. In this review we first focus on the important age-related changes of CAP from birth to peripubertal age and, subsequently, we describe the numerous studies on CAP in developmental clinical conditions such as pediatric sleep disordered breathing, disorders of arousal (sleep walking and sleep terror), pediatric narcolepsy, learning disabilities with mental retardation (fragile-X syndrome, Down syndrome, autistic spectrum disorder, Prader-Willi syndrome) or without (dyslexia, Asperger syndrome, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder). CAP rate is almost always decreased in these conditions with the exception of the ...
Sleep alterations and iron deficiency anemia in infancy
Abstract: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) continues to be the most common single nutrient deficiency in the world. An estimated 20?25% of the world?s infants have IDA, with at least as many having iron deficiency without anemia. Infants are at particular risk due to rapid growth and limited dietary sources of iron. We found that infants with IDA showed different motor activity patterning in all sleep-waking states and several differences in sleep states organization. Sleep alterations were still apparent years after correction of anemia with iron treatment in the absence of subsequent IDA. We suggest that altered sleep patterns may represent an underlying mechanism that interferes with optimal brain functioning during sleep and wakefulness in former IDA children. (Source: Sleep Medicine)
Advances in pediatric restless legs syndrome: Iron, genetics, diagnosis and treatment
Abstract: A substantial literature characterizes pediatric restless legs syndrome (RLS), which occurs in about 1.9% of individuals between 8 and 18years of age. Diagnostic interview techniques and an updated inventory of pediatric RLS mimics are presented. Evidence for comorbidity of pediatric RLS with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, depression, and anxiety is reviewed as is the relationship to periodic limb movements in sleep and periodic limb movement disorder. The role of relative iron deficiency in pediatric RLS is discussed, along with new data indicating the benefit of iron therapy in reducing symptoms. Five genetic variants have been linked to RLS, an important finding in a condition that is highly familial in early-onset cases. Numerous case reports and case series indica...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Sleep and ADHD
Abstract: This paper, intended to provide useful insights for the clinical management of sleep disturbances in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), presents a critical, updated overview of the most relevant studies on the prevalence, etiopathophysiology and treatment strategies of sleep problems associated with ADHD, including restless legs syndrome, periodic limb movements in sleep, sleep-onset delay, increased nocturnal motor activity, sleep-disordered breathing, deficit in alertness, and sleep alterations accounted for by comorbid psychiatric disorders or ADHD medications. We also discuss some possible avenues for future research in the field. (Source: Sleep Medicine)
Sleep in children with autistic spectrum disorder
Abstract: Children and adolescents with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) suffer from sleep problems, particularly insomnia, at a higher rate than typically developing children, ranging from 40% to 80%. Sleep problems in ASD might occur as a result of complex interactions between biological, psychological, social/environmental, and family factors, including child rearing practices that are not conducive to good sleep. Interestingly, children with a history of developmental regression have a more disturbed sleep pattern than children without regression. Even though regulation of sleep in children with ASD is still poorly understood, circadian abnormalities in autism might be the result of genetic abnormalities related to melatonin synthesis and melatonin?s role in modulating synaptic tran...
Congestive Heart Failure
Title: Congestive Heart FailureCategory: Diseases and ConditionsCreated: 12/31/1997Last Editorial Review: 7/22/2010 (Source: MedicineNet Sleep General)
Botulinum toxin type A in simple motor tics: Short-term and long-term treatment-effects
Abstract: To determine the short-term and long-term treatment-effects of botulinum toxin type A in simple motor tics, we analyzed 15 consecutive patients (18 tics) with simple motor tics that were treated every 3 months with injections of BTX-A. Efficacy (rated on a 4-level scale) and duration of effect of the first 2 and last 2 (if treated 5 times or more) treatments were recorded, as well as latency of response, changes of premonitory urges (PMUs) and possible side effects.Total number of treatments for each tic varied from 2 to 50 (mean 11, median 6). In 16 of 18 tics (89%) short-term efficacy was reported successful (good or moderate). Long-term efficacy was reported in 12 tics of which 11 showed similar or even increased beneficial effects. Premonitory urge (PMU) was reported in 8 pat...
Sleep apnea associated with HF and CHD in men
Men with obstructive sleep apnea have a greater risk for heart failure and coronary heart disease than women with the breathing disorder, a US study reports. (Source: MedWire News - Heart Failure)<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Black legs
(Source: BMJ Online First)
Which family members use the best nets? An analysis of the condition of mosquito nets and their distribution within households in Tanzania
Conclusions: Infants and other vulnerable groups were most likely to sleep under the most protective nets. Nevertheless, more communication efforts are needed to increase use of intact ITNs within households for children. Further research is necessary to fully understand motivations influencing within-household net distribution. (Source: Malaria Journal)
Sleep is neither a passive nor an active phenomenon
According to traditional belief, prolonged wakefulness during the day is followed by brain rest at night in the form of sleep. This passive theory of sleep was replaced by the active sleep genesis concept, mainly after the realization that brain activity is only slightly reduced during sleep. There is now growing evidence to suggest that sleep is auto-regulatory and that it is not necessary to attribute sleep genesis to either an active or a passive mechanism. (Source: Sleep and Biological Rhythms)
A new perspective on sleepiness
The aim of this investigation was to examine current methods for measuring sleepiness from a new perspective, highlighting different definitions of sleepiness that are being used, inadequacies of the current conceptual framework for thinking about sleep and wakefulness, and the different timescales used for measuring sleepiness. The currently used methods are briefly described. The results of different tests of sleepiness within the same subjects are then examined, first, using subjectively reported item-scores from the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and later, using mean sleep latencies in the Multiple Sleep Latency Test and the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test. It is concluded that sleepiness, in the sense of sleep propensity, is not a single characteristic of each person. Measurements of slee...
Insomnia symptoms associated with hyperglycemia
In recent years, insomnia and short sleep duration have been reported to worsen glucose tolerance. Because only a few prospective studies have investigated this issue in Japan, various aspects have yet to be elucidated. Therefore, we conducted a 2-year prospective study of Japanese local residents in order to examine the association between the onset of glucose tolerance disorders and insomnia/short sleep duration. In 2005 and 2007, residents of a rural community in Aomori Prefecture, Japan, were sent a self-administered questionnaire, and peripheral blood samples were collected to measure their fasting plasma glucose levels. A total of 497 residents participated in both of the surveys. The incidence of hyperglycemia was calculated as the number of people who had had neither hyperglycemia ...<div id="medworm"><p><b><i>MedWorm Message:</i></b> Register for <b><a href="http://www.medmatcha.com" target ="_self">MedMatcha, MedWorm's medical advertising network</a></b>, and receive $5 free advertising.</p></div>
Returning from night shift to day life: Beneficial effects of light on sleep
Subjects working a 12 h offshore night shift for 2 weeks normally adapt to the night shift and are out of synchrony when they return home to day life, with consequent problems of poor sleep. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of timed light treatment to hasten circadian adaptation and improve sleep after the night shift. Ten male shift workers worked 19.00[ndash]07.00 h (n= 4) or 18.00[ndash]06.00 h (n= 6) offshore shift schedules. They were assessed for the last 7 days of a 14 or 21 day offshore night shift and for the following 14 days at home. Either timed light treatment/sunglasses or no light treatment/no sunglasses were scheduled in a crossover design during days 1[ndash]5 after the nightshift, theoretically timed to advance the circadian system. Subjects comp...
Acute sleep restriction does not affect declarative memory in 10-year-old girls
The study aim was to determine the effects of sleep restriction (5 h of time in bed) compared with 10 h of sleep opportunity on declarative memory function in young children. Fourteen girls attended a sleep laboratory for three nights: adaptation, control, and restriction. The Auditory Verbal Learning Task (AVLT) measured declarative memory performance before and after sleep. No significant differences were found in performance between control and sleep restriction. Performance deteriorated in all delayed recall trials, with significant differences found between pre- and post-sleep trials in both conditions. Memory function in children, as measured by the AVLT, is not affected by acute sleep restriction. (Source: Sleep and Biological Rhythms)
Loneliness Matters: A Theoretical and Empirical Review of Consequences and Mechanisms.
Authors: Hawkley LC, Cacioppo JT As a social species, humans rely on a safe, secure social surround to survive and thrive. Perceptions of social isolation, or loneliness, increase vigilance for threat and heighten feelings of vulnerability while also raising the desire to reconnect. Implicit hypervigilance for social threat alters psychological processes that influence physiological functioning, diminish sleep quality, and increase morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this paper is to review the features and consequences of loneliness within a comprehensive theoretical framework that informs interventions to reduce loneliness. We review physical and mental health consequences of loneliness, mechanisms for its effects, and effectiveness of extant interventions. Features of a loneline...
Cysteine: A potential biomarker of obstructive sleep apnea.
CONCLUSION: Cys is a potential biomarker of OSA in obese and non-obese patients and is reduced after effective OSA treatment. PMID: 20651023 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] (Source: Chest)

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