Copyright 2009 Medical News Today Latest Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/sleep/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171522.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171522.php A baby's sleep position is the best predictor of a misshapen skull condition known as deformational plagiocephaly - or the development of flat spots on an infant's head - according to findings reported by Arizona State University scientists in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics. Pediatrics / Children's Health Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171397.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171397.php A police officer who works the night shift, typically from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., already is at a disadvantage when it comes to getting a good "night's" sleep. Add frequent overtime to that schedule, and an officer may be climbing into bed as the sun comes up, setting the stage for short and unrestful slumber. A new study published in the current issue of Archives of Environmental & Occupational Health (vol. 64, No. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171212.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171212.php Sleep deprivation adversely affects automatic, accurate responses and can lead to potentially devastating errors, a finding of particular concern among firefighters, police officers, soldiers and others who work in a sleep-deprived state, University of Texas at Austin researchers say. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170783.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170783.php Chronobiology International - Informa Healthcare's journal on how biological rhythms affect the systems of living things - has published a 14-year study of more than 7000 subjects which concludes that shift-work constitutes an independent risk factor for impaired glucose metabolism. Modern industrialization, consumer expectations and globalization have led to the widespread adoption of round-the-clock operations in many industries throughout the world. Biology / Biochemistry Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170662.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170662.php Hours of analysing snoring sounds have paid off for a group of researchers from The University of Queensland and Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital. Led by Dr Udantha Abeyratne from the Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170444.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170444.php Women with asthma are more anxious, find it harder to sleep and are more tired during the day than their male counterparts, but nevertheless tend to be better at following their treatment, reveals a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg in close collaboration with Sahlgrenska University Hospital. Respiratory / Asthma Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170052.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170052.php Melatonin, a natural hormone secreted by the own human body, is an excellent sleep regulator expected to replace somniferous, which are much more aggressive, to correct the sleep/wakefulness pace when human biological clock becomes altered. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169943.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169943.php Extended Therapy for Blood Clot Prevention Yields Greater Benefits in Hip/Knee Surgery (#8587) Patients undergoing total knee replacement (TKR) or total hip replacement (THR) surgeries may experience better outcomes if they receive extended therapy for the prevention of thrombosis (blood clots). Vascular Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169945.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169945.php CPAP Therapy Associated With Slight Weight Gain (#7833) Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), a common therapy for sleep apnea, is associated with a slight but temporary weight gain in patients. Researchers from the University of Toledo Medical College in Ohio followed 152 patients who underwent CPAP therapy for 1 month. Of the patients, 119 (78 percent) gained an average of 3 lbs. Weight gain occurred in 81 percent of men and 73 percent of women. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169952.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169952.php For children with obstructive sleep apnea, standard care often includes a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. But researchers at Saint Louis University say further research is needed to determine if surgery is the best option for these patients. "We know surgery is associated with improvements in children with sleep apnea, but this research will be the first to allow us to investigate whether or not the surgery causes those improvements," says Ron Mitchell, M.D. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169775.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169775.php Night-shift workers should avoid drinking coffee if they wish to improve their sleep, according to research published in the journal Sleep Medicine. A new study led by Julie Carrier, a Université de Montréal psychology professor and a researcher at the affiliated Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur Sleep Disorders Centre, has found the main byproduct of coffee, caffeine, interferes with sleep and this side-effect worsens as people age. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169762.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169762.php Children With Asthma May Benefit From Reduction in Daily Steroids (#9114) Children with status asthmaticus, those who experience prolonged and serious asthma attacks, may safely be able to reduce their daily corticosteroid dose. Researchers from Kosair Children's Hospital in Kentucky conducted before and after chart reviews of 292 patients younger than 18 years who were hospitalized with status asthmaticus. Respiratory / Asthma Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169824.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169824.php Bedwetting is a common childhood condition. It occurs when there is an accidental loss of urine during sleep. Bedwetting is also known as nocturnal enuresis or nighttime incontinence. It is normal in children who are under five years old. At this age, nighttime bladder control may not be established. Bedwetting is the most common pediatric-health issue. Studies show that parents become worried too quickly because they expect children to stay dry too early. Urology / Nephrology Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169556.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169556.php There is a high prevalence of nocturnal teeth grinding, or bruxism, in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), particularly in Caucasians. New research presented at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), found that nearly 1 in 4 patients with OSA suffers from nighttime teeth grinding; this seems to be especially more prevalent in men and in Caucasians compared with other ethnic groups. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169557.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169557.php Golfers who undergo treatment for sleep apnea may improve their golf game as well as their overall health, shows new research. A new study presented at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), found that golfers with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) who received nasal positive airway pressure (NPAP) for their disorder improved their daytime sleepiness scores and lowered their golf handicap by as much as three strokes. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169558.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169558.php New research shows that Caucasian women may suffer from restless legs syndrome (RLS), a sleep disorder characterized by the strong urge to move the legs, up to four times more than African-American women. The study, presented at CHEST 2009, the 75th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), found that, overall, non-African-American (NAA) patients experienced RLS four times more often than African-Americans (AA). Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169497.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169497.php Sleep apnea is a common disease that affects millions of people all over the world, and if left undiagnosed and untreated can cause serious health complications. GE Sensing & Inspection Technologies (NYSE: GE) has developed the Nova Pressure Amplified (NPA) series of pressure sensors for medical devices. Small and effective, the NPA is a critical component in creating cost-effective sleep apnea monitors that are more accurate and reliable than those currently on the market. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Mon, 02 Nov 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169463.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169463.php A study in the Nov.1 issue of the journal Sleep shows that retirement is followed by a sharp decrease in the prevalence of sleep disturbances. Findings suggest that this general improvement in sleep is likely to result from the removal of work-related demands and stress rather than from actual health benefits of retirement. Results show that the odds of having disturbed sleep in the seven years after retirement were 26 percent lower (adjusted odds ratio of 0. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Mon, 02 Nov 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169464.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169464.php A study in the Nov.1 issue of the journal Sleep shows that sleep deprivation causes some people to shift from a more automatic, implicit process of information categorization (information-integration) to a more controlled, explicit process (rule-based). This use of rule-based strategies in a task in which information-integration strategies are optimal can lead to potentially devastating errors when quick and accurate categorization is fundamental to survival. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169368.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169368.php NECT (Nifurtimox-Eflornithine Combination Therapy), the first new treatment in 25 years against Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) or sleeping sickness, is now available. Endemic countries have now begun the process of ordering the new combination treatment and kits through the World Health Organization (WHO). Developed by DNDi and its partners, NECT cuts the cost of treatment by half and significantly reduces the burden on health workers. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169249.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169249.php Transcept Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: TSPT) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Complete Response Letter regarding the New Drug Application (NDA) for Intermezzo® (zolpidem tartrate sublingual tablet). The NDA, submitted by Transcept in September 2008, seeks approval to market Intermezzo® for use as-needed for the treatment of insomnia when a middle of the night awakening is followed by difficulty returning to sleep. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169148.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169148.php Despite recent advances in anti-inflammatory therapy, many rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients continue to suffer from pain. Research published in BioMed Central's open access journal, Arthritis Research & Therapy found that inflammation is associated with heightened pain sensitivity at joint sites, whereas increased sleep problems are associated with heightened pain sensitivity at both joint and non-joint sites. Arthritis / Rheumatology Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168880.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168880.php A research collaboration led by biologists and neuroscientists at the University of Pennsylvania has found a molecular pathway in the brain that is the cause of cognitive impairment due to sleep deprivation. Just as important, the team believes that the cognitive deficits caused by sleep deprivation, such as an inability to focus, learn or memorize, may be reversible by reducing the concentration of a specific enzyme that builds up in the hippocampus of the brain. Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168328.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168328.php Too much light at night can lead to symptoms of depression, according to a new study in mice. Researchers found that mice housed in a lighted room 24 hours a day exhibited more depressive symptoms than did similar mice that had a normal light-dark cycle. Depression Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168177.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168177.php Molecules that may hold the key to new ways to fight cancer and other diseases have been found to play an important role in regulating circadian rhythm, says Liheng Shi, a researcher in Texas A&M's Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences. Circadian rhythm is the roughly 24-hour cycle of physiological activities of humans, animals and even bacteria, Shi explains. Biology / Biochemistry