The Diagnosis and Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Disorders

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event The Diagnosis and Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Disorders Leon C. Lack1* 1 Flinders University, Australia Sleepiness is determined biologically by two comparable but independent factors: homeostatic sleep drive and circadian rhythm sleep drive. The circadian sleepiness varies with a host of synchronised endogenous physiological and hormonal rhythms across the 24-hour period. Normal entrainment of this circadian system favours sleep at night (aprox. 2300-0700h) and alertness/productivity during the day. However, abnormalities of the circadian system in timing or amplitude can cause chronic or short term difficulties sleeping when desired and being alert when necessary. Delayed sleep phase disorder (DSPD) results from a 2-6 hour delay from normal of the circadian system making it impossible to initiate sleep before 0100h. Advanced sleep phase disorder (ASPD) results from an abnormally early timed circadian system making it impossible to maintain sleep past 0300h. Free-running rhythms do not remain stable in the 24-hour period but tend to drift later making night-time sleep and daytime alertness difficult for periods of days or weeks. Jet-lag and shiftwork usually produce short-lived sleep/wake problems. Since the most common disorders are from abnormal timing of the circadian system, tools to re-time circadian rhythms such as retinal light stimulation and exogenous melatonin administration can be used to treat these disorders. Light intensity, duration, and wavelength are important dimensions for treatment effect. However, the timing of light is critical for the effectiveness of these treatments. Bright light stimulation pushes the endogenous sleep period away from it like similar poles on a bar magnet (e.g. south/south) while the time of melatonin administration pulls the endogenous sleep period towards it like two opposite magnetic poles (e.g. north/south). The ‘push’ and ‘pull’ effects can be combined to shepherd the endogenous sleep period into the desired time (e.g. 2300-0700h). Other behavioural procedures and cognitive therapies can also be helpful in the treatment of these problematic circadian rhythm disorders. Keywords: Circadian Rhythm, Sleep, Sleep Disorders, delayed sleep phase syndrome, advanced sleep phase disorder, Circadian rhythm disorder Conference: ASP2016 - The 26th Annual Meeting of the Australasian Society for Psychophysiology, Adelaide Australia, Adelaide,SA, Australia, 12 Dec - 14 Dec, 2016. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation Topic: Abstract (general) Citation: Lack LC (2016). The Diagnosis and Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Disorders. Conference Abstract: ASP2016 - The 26th Annual Meeting of the Australasian Society for Psychophysiology, Adelaide Australia. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2016.221.00001 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 24 Nov 2016; Published Online: 05 Dec 2016. * Correspondence: Prof. Leon C Lack, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia, leon.lack@flinders.edu.au Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Leon C Lack Google Leon C Lack Google Scholar Leon C Lack PubMed Leon C Lack Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.