Striatal Dopamine Transporter Availability is Associated with Sleep Disturbance among Patients with Bipolar I Disorder: A Single-photon Emission Computed Tomography Study Using [99mTc] TRODAT-1.

Abstract

Bipolar disorder (BD) is characterized by the poor sleep quality. Whether the striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) availability is related to sleep quality among patients with BD is unclear. Fifty-three euthymic patients with BD (24 BD-I and 29 BD-II) and sixty-eight healthy controls were enrolled. The Chinese Version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used, and the availability of DAT was assessed by single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) using [99mTc] TRODAT-1. The sleep disturbance component of the PSQI was significantly associated with the level of DAT availability among patients with BD. The striatal dopaminergic activity that contributes to resilience to adversity was associated with sleep pattern among patients with BD.