Una revisión de los trastornos del sueño en la esquizofrenia

Abstract

Up to 80% of patients with schizophrenia suffer from sleep disorders, and are usually under-diagnosed and under-treated due to a lack of being taken into account in the management of this illness. The main disorders are insomnia, restless legs syndrome, obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome, hypersomnia, the parasomnias, and circadian rhythm disorders. The importance of insomnia is highlighted, as it can be a prodromic sign of the illness, as well as an early alarm sign of an incipient psychotic decompensation. Polysomnographic changes that correlate with subjective clinical insomnia and with the predominant clinical manifestations of schizophrenia.Antipsychotic drugs can alter the structure of sleep, but they also have an important role in the treatment of sleep alterations in schizophrenia. They have demonstrated a clinical improvement of the insomnia and the polysomnographic correction of the changes in sleep architecture, with an improvement in the quality of life and functional capacity of the patients. However, they can also exacerbate other comorbid sleep disorders such as restless legs syndrome and obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome, or trigger hypersomnia or obesity.There is evidence that sleep disorders in schizophrenia has a significant effect on the quality of life and has an influence on the symptoms of patients with schizophrenia, thus it is very important to recognise them and treat them accordingly.