Medical hypnosis mitigates laboratory dyspnoea in healthy humans: a randomised, controlled experimental trial.

QUESTION: Dyspnoea persisting despite treatments of underlying causes requires symptomatic approaches. Medical hypnosis could provide relief without the untoward effects of pharmacological approaches. We addressed this question through experimentally induced dyspnoea in healthy humans (inspiratory threshold loading -excessive inspiratory effort- and carbon dioxide stimulation -air hunger-) MATERIAL AND METHODS: 20 volunteers (10 women, 21-40) were studied on 4 separate days. The order of the visits was randomised in two steps, firstly "inspiratory threshold loading first" versus "carbon dioxide first" group (n=10 in each group), secondly "medical hypnosis first" versus "visual distraction first" subgroup (n=5 in each subgroup). Each visit comprised three 5-minutes periods (reference, intervention, washout) during which participants used visual analog scales to rate dyspnoea's sensory and affective dimensions and after which they completed the Multidimensional Dyspnea Profile. RESULTS: Medical hypnosis reduced both dimensions of dyspnoea significantly more than visual distraction (inspiratory threshold loading: sensory reduction after 5 min 34% of full VAS versus 8% -p=0.0042-; affective reduction 17.6% versus 2.4% -p=0.044-; carbon dioxide; sensory reduction after 5 min 36.9% versus 3% -p=0.0015-; affective reduction 29.1% versus 8.7% -p=0.0023-). The Multidimensional Dyspnea Profile showed more marked sensory effects during inspiratory threshold loading and more marked affective effects during carbon dioxide stimulation. ANSWER TO THE QUESTION: Medical hypnosis was more effective than visual distraction at attenuating the sensory and affective dimensions of experimentally induced dyspnoea. This provides a strong rationale for clinical studies of hypnosis in persistent dyspnoea patients.

[Sleep in a performance artist: Eight days and seven nights sitting inside a metal sculpture]. / Le sommeil d'un performeur de l'extrême. Dormir huit jours et sept nuits, assis, sans bouger, enfermé dans une sculpture.

Sleep in extreme situations has been little studied. The artist Abraham Poincheval (AP) is known for his performances in confined spaces. For his show at the Perrotin Gallery in Paris, he was enclosed for 8days and 7nights in a metal sculpture of his body in a seated position, with his head facing a work by Hans Hartung at the end of a cone system placed in front of his eyes which occluded all other visual stimuli. The interior of the metal structure was not padded and there was no head support. His sleep and internal temperature were continuously recorded using polysomnography (Grael, Compumedics) and an orally swallowed temperature sensitive capsule (Bodycap) with temperature sampling every 2min. AP slept an average of 355.1min/24h, composed of light slow-wave sleep (N1: 47.1min, N2: 192.2min), deep slow-wave sleep (N3: 100.4min), and REM sleep 4,3 % (15.4min). Sleep, although mostly nocturnal, was split into periods of no more than 20min. Deep sleep was therefore remarkably resistant to the uncomfortable experimental conditions, while REM sleep was markedly impaired, lasting only a few short minutes and followed by rapid awakening. This is probably due to the head position within the sculpture which was unsupported, so REM sleep with its inherent muscle atonia led to involuntary head flexion and was impossible to sustain for long. The thermal minimum was between 5:17 a.m. and 6:35 a.m. The amplitude of the core temperature decreased by more than 30 % between the beginning and the end of the protocol. Despite the immobility induced by the confined experimental conditions, there was no desynchronization of circadian rhythms. The sleep time was surprisingly long given the conditions, and slow-wave sleep was relatively preserved with an amount typically found in normal subjects while REM sleep was markedly impaired. Slow-wave sleep is clearly preserved underlying its central role in physical and mental homeostasis. REM sleep is clearly more fragile. The reduction in REM sleep linked to position has been found in a study of sleep in the sitting position in airplanes where loss of muscle tonus in the neck fragments REM sleep. Techniques for selective REM sleep deprivation also use muscle atonia: one of the initial techniques of selective REM sleep deprivation relied on muscle atonia in REM causing a cat to fall from a small perch into water. In man, the lack of head support is clearly a source of REM fragmentation. However in the case of this study, we cannot exclude an effect of other factors, notably the meditative techniques used by the performer to maintain attention on the painting, described as a dream state punctuated by visual hallucinations. Surprisingly, despite physical isolation within the sculpture, AP's biological rhythms remained stable. However, the conditions were not those of complete isolation: noise, the presence of the public in the gallery who occasionally talked to AP through the sculpture, and variations in light during the day were all temporal cues. In addition, a heatwave during the performance raised the temperature in the room with reduced total sleep time on the hottest night. Although the phase of the circadian rhythm measured by the internal temperature did not change, the amplitude fell which is compatible with reduced physical activity. In conclusion, under physically constraining and uncomfortable sleep conditions, deep sleep is maintained while REM sleep is starkly reduced. From a homeostatic point of view, this means that over a short period of time, in a survival situation, energy recovery through deep slow-wave sleep takes priority over REM sleep.

[Practice guide for the management of nightmare disorders]. / Conduite à tenir devant des cauchemars récurrents.

Practice guide for The management of nightmare Disorders Nightmares are a common parasomnia that occurs mainly During rem sleep (paradoxical sleep) and at all ages. Recurrent nightmares, also known as nightmare disorder, Are considered a clinical entity and cause significant Suffering. Other parasomnias presenting dysphoric dreams Or fragments of dreams are to be distinguished from Nightmares and their management is different: they are Mainly night terror, hallucinations related to sleep and Rem sleep behavior disorder. Nightmares can be idiopathic Or comorbid; they are more common in the context Of stress or trauma and in people with high levels of Anxiety. The clinical assessment primarily looks for psychopathology, But also for another sleep disorder that can Promote the onset of nightmares (narcolepsy, obstructive Sleep apnea syndrome) and an iatrogenic or toxic origin; Rarely nocturnal epilepsy is involved. The treatment of Recurrent nightmares is primarily psychotherapeutic, and The imagery rehearsal therapy (irt) is recommended for Its effectiveness for both idiopathic nightmares and those Related to post-traumatic stress disorder.

Conduite à tenir devant Des cauchemars récurrents Le cauchemar est une parasomnie fréquente qui s'exprime Principalement durant le sommeil paradoxal et se manifeste A tous les âges de la vie. Les cauchemars récurrents, Appelés aussi « maladie des cauchemars ¼, sont considérés Comme une entité clinique et sont source d'une Souffrance significative. D'autres parasomnies, présentant Des rêves ou fragments de rêves dysphoriques, doivent Etre distinguées des cauchemars, et leur prise en charge Est différente : ce sont principalement la terreur nocturne, Les hallucinations liées au sommeil et le trouble comportemental En sommeil paradoxal. Les cauchemars peuvent Etre idiopathiques ou comorbides ; ils sont plus fréquents Dans un contexte de stress ou de traumatisme et chez Les personnes dont le niveau d'anxiété est élevé. Le bilan Clinique recherche en premier lieu une psychopathologie Mais aussi un autre trouble du sommeil pouvant favoriser La survenue de cauchemars (narcolepsie, syndrome D'apnées obstructives du sommeil) et une origine iatrogène Ou toxique ; rarement une épilepsie nocturne est En cause. Le traitement des cauchemars récurrents est Avant tout psychothérapeutique, et la méthode par répétition D'imagerie mentale (rim) est actuellement recommandée Pour son efficacité, tant pour les cauchemars Idiopathiques que pour les cauchemars liés à un trouble De stress post-traumatique.

Do hypnotics increase the risk of driving accidents or near miss accidents due to hypovigilance? The effects of sex, chronic sleepiness, sleep habits and sleep pathology.

Driving accidents due to hypovigilance are common but the role of hypnotics is unclear in patients suffering from sleep disorders. Our study examined factors influencing accidents and near miss accidents attributed to sleepiness at the wheel (ANMAS). Using data from an online questionnaire aimed at patients with sleep disorders, we analysed the associations between ANMAS, sociodemographic data, symptoms of sleep disorders, severity of insomnia (Insomnia Severity Index (ISI)) symptoms of anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale with depression (HADD) and anxiety (HADA) subscales), chronic sleepiness (Epworth sleepiness scale ESS), hypnotic use and information about sleep habits. Hypnotics were hierarchically grouped into Z-drugs, sedative medication, melatonin and over the counter (OTC) alternative treatments. Of 10802 participants; 9.1% reported ANMAS (Men 11.1% women 8.3%) and 24.4% took hypnotics (Z-drugs 8.5%, sedative medication 8%, melatonin 5.6% and alternative treatments 2.5%). Logistic regression analysis identified the following risk factors for ANMAS: moderate (OR 2.4; CI: 2.10-2.79) and severe sleepiness (ESS OR 5.66; CI: 4.74-6.77), depression (HADD OR 1.2; CI: 1.03-1.47), anxiety (HADA OR 1.2;CI: 1.01-1.47), and insufficient sleep (OR1.4; CI: 1.2-1.7). Hypnotics were not associated with an increased risk of ANMAS in patients suffering from insomnia. Risk factors varied according to sex: in females, sex (OR 0.; CI: 0.55-0.74), mild insomnia (OR 0.5; CI: 0.3-0.8) and use of alternative treatments (OR 0.455, CI:0.23-0.89) were protective factors and risk was increased by sleepiness, sleep debt, social jetlag, caffeine use, anxiety and depression. In men no protective factors were identified: sleepiness, sleep debt, and severe insomnia were associated with an increased risk of ANMAS. In clinical practice, all patients with daytime sleepiness and men with severe insomnia should be counselled concerning driving risk and encouraged to avoid sleep debt.

[Sleep habits and lifestyle of elderly patients with insomnia]. / Les habitudes de vie et de sommeil chez les patients âgés insomniaques.

Certain inappropriate routines can have a negative impact on sleep, leading to sleep disorders or even aggravating pre-existing sleep pathologies. An observational study of 176 patients aged 60 or over, suffering from chronic insomnia, has been carried out in order to find out more about these patients' sleep habits and lifestyles and to identify those that can be corrected to improve insomnia in this population.

Emerging psychiatric disorders in Kleine-Levin syndrome.

In Kleine-Levin syndrome (KLS), episodes of hypersomnia and cognitive, psychiatric and behavioural disturbances alternate with asymptomatic periods in adolescents. We evaluated whether psychiatric disorders would emerge during asymptomatic periods in a naturalistic, uncontrolled clinical cohort. Patients with primary KLS underwent psychiatric interviews at diagnosis and every year for 1-10 years, leading to diagnosis of former and present comorbid psychiatric disorders. Among the 115 patients (65.2% male and aged 16.1 ± 4.8 years at KLS onset), 19 (16.5%) had a history of psychiatric disorder prior to KLS onset, which persisted afterwards in 10. Twenty-five (21%) patients developed a new, comorbid psychiatric disorder 1-6 years after KLS onset, during 'asymptomatic' periods, including mood disorders (n = 14; including major depressive episodes, n = 8; recurrent depressive episodes, n = 2; bipolar I disorder, n = 1; dysthymic disorder, n = 1; adjustment disorder with depressive mood, n = 1; and mood disorder not otherwise specified, n = 1), anxiety disorders (n = 7), eating disorders (n = 2), psychotic disorders not otherwise specified (n = 2), schizoaffective disorder (n = 1) and cannabis dependence (n = 1). Six patients attempted suicide: two before and two after KLS onset, and two during episodes. Female sex, longer disease course, longer time incapacitated (356 ± 223 versus 155 ± 186 days) and more frequent psychiatric symptoms during episodes (but no family or personal history of psychiatric disorders) were associated with emerging psychiatric disorders. Contrary to the alleged benignity of KLS and normality between episodes, one KLS patient in five suffers from emerging psychiatric disorders. These disorders may depend on personal vulnerability and, most probably, on psychiatric symptoms during episodes.

Health-related quality of life in young adults with congenital central hypoventilation syndrome due to PHOX2B mutations: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS) is a rare genetic disease due to PHOX2B mutations. CCHS patients suffer from many autonomic disorders, dominated clinically by defective ventilatory automatisms. From birth, the life of CCHS patients depends on ventilatory support during sleep, involving a high burden of care. Whether or not this impairs the quality of life of these patients during adulthood remains unknown. METHODS: We applied the medical outcome study short form-36 (SF-36) to 12 CCHS patients aged 15-33 (9 women) at the time of their passage from pediatric to adult care. Scores for the SF-36 dimensions were compared to the age- and gender-matched French reference population after transformation into standardized Z-scores. The SF-36 physical component summary score (PCS) and mental component summary score (MCS) were compared to American reference values. RESULTS: Median Z-scores were significantly different from zero for PF (physical functioning, p = 0.020) and GH (general health perception, p = 0.0342) and for PCS (p = 0.020). The other physical dimensions (RP, role limitation due to physical function; BP, bodily pain) and the mental dimensions (VT, vitality; SF, social functioning; RE, role limitation due to emotional function; MH, mental health) and MCS were not altered. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that, despite the physical constraints imposed by CCHS and its anxiogenic nature, this disease is associated with an impairment of health-related quality of life in young adults that remains moderate. Whatever the underlying explanations, these results convey hope to parents with a child diagnosed with CCHS and for patients themselves.

Kleine-Levin syndrome in 120 patients: differential diagnosis and long episodes.

OBJECTIVE: Kleine-Levin syndrome is a rare disease characterized by recurrent episodes of hypersomnia with behavioral and cognitive disturbances. We aimed at describing the diagnosis procedure, risk factors, and severe forms. METHODS: In consecutive patients referred for suspected Kleine-Levin syndrome, we detailed differential diagnoses, and atypical and secondary cases, compared typical patients with healthy subjects, and examined the characteristics of patients with prolonged (>30 days) episodes. RESULTS: Among 166 referred patients, 120 had typical primary Kleine-Levin syndrome (syndrome secondary to brain diseases; n = 4, atypical syndrome, n = 7; differential diagnoses that were mostly psychiatric, n = 29; incomplete information, n = 6). The prevalence in France was 1.8 per million. The patients were often male (64%) and had more frequent birth and developmental abnormalities (45%) than controls (despite normal karyotypes), and most (80%) had teenage onset, with no difference between patients with prolonged (n = 34) and short (n = 85) episodes. In patients with prolonged episodes, the durations of the first episode (32 ± 33 vs 11 ± 6 days) and subsequent episodes were longer (mean episode duration = 23 ± 19 vs 10 ± 3 days) and the disease course tended to be longer (9 ± 6 vs 6 ± 4 years). During episodes, patients with prolonged episodes had shorter sleep time, higher levels of anxiety, increased agitation, and more feelings of disembodiment and amnesia. Between episodes, they were more tired, needed more naps, fell asleep more rapidly, and had higher anxiety/depression scores. INTERPRETATION: Mental disorders are frequent differential diagnoses of Kleine-Levin syndrome. One-third of patients have prolonged (>1 month) episodes with more frequent immediate and long-term consequences of the disease, prompting therapeutic trials.

A scale for assessing the severity of arousal disorders.

BACKGROUND: Arousal disorders may have serious health consequences. OBJECTIVE: To develop a scale assessing the severity of arousal disorders (Paris Arousal Disorders Severity Scale, PADSS). SETTING: University hospital. DESIGN: Controlled study. PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive patients (older than 15 y), with sleepwalking (SW) and/or sleep terrors (ST), subjects with previous SW/ST, normal controls and patients with rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder. INTERVENTION: The self-rated scale listed 17 parasomniac behaviors (PADSS-A), assessed their frequency from never to twice or more per night (PADSS-B) and evaluated the consequences (PADSS-C: disturbed sleep, injuries, fatigue, and psychological consequences). The clinimetric properties and face validity of the scale were tested. RESULTS: Half of the 73 patients with SW/ST (more men than women) had injured themselves or others, whereas 15% had concomitant sexsomnia and 23% had amnestic eating behaviors. The total PADSS score (range: 0-50) was 19.4 ± 6.3 (range: 8-36) in this group, 11.7 ± 5.9 in 26 subjects with previous SW/ST, 8.8 ± 3.2 in 26 patients with RBD, and 2.0 ± 3.5 in 53 normal controls (P < 0.05). The PADSS demonstrated high sensitivity (83.6%), specificity (87.8%), internal consistency, and test-retest reliability (0.79). The best cutoff for the total score was at 13/14. Exploratory factor analysis revealed two components: wandering and violence/handling. The complexity of behaviors emerging from N3 sleep (scored on videopolysomnography) positively correlated with scores for the PADSS-total, PADSS-A, PADSS-C, and the "violence/handling" factor. CONCLUSION: This scale had reasonable psychometric properties and could be used for screening and stratifying patients and for evaluating the effects of treatments.

Fight or flight? Dream content during sleepwalking/sleep terrors vs. rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder.

OBJECTIVE: Dreams enacted during sleepwalking or sleep terrors (SW/ST) may differ from those enacted during rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD). METHODS: Subjects completed aggression, depression, and anxiety questionnaires. The mentations associated with SW/ST and RBD behaviors were collected over their lifetime and on the morning after video polysomnography (PSG). The reports were analyzed for complexity, length, content, setting, bizarreness, and threat. RESULTS: Ninety-one percent of 32 subjects with SW/ST and 87.5% of 24 subjects with RBD remembered an enacted dream (121 dreams in a lifetime and 41 dreams recalled on the morning). These dreams were more complex and less bizarre, with a higher level of aggression in the RBD than in SW/ST subjects. In contrast, we found low aggression, anxiety, and depression scores during the daytime in both groups. As many as 70% of enacted dreams in SW/ST and 60% in RBD involved a threat, but there were more misfortunes and disasters in the SW/ST dreams and more human and animal aggressions in the RBD dreams. The response to these threats differed, as the sleepwalkers mostly fled from a disaster (and 25% fought back when attacked), while 75% of RBD subjects counterattacked when assaulted. The dreams setting included their bedrooms in 42% SW/ST dreams, though this finding was exceptional in the RBD dreams. CONCLUSION: Different threat simulations and modes of defense seem to play a role during dream-enacted behaviors (e.g., fleeing a disaster during SW/ST, counterattacking a human or animal assault during RBD), paralleling and exacerbating the differences observed between normal dreaming in nonrapid eye movement (NREM) vs rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.

Sleep-related eating disorder versus sleepwalking: a controlled study.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Sleep-related eating disorder (SRED) may have some common clinical features with sleepwalking and with eating behavior disorders. The objective of this study was to compare clinical, sleep, and eating behavior measures in patients with SRED vs. sleepwalkers and controls. METHODS: Overall, 15 patients with SRED, 21 sleepwalkers, and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers underwent interviews, completed sleep, anxiety, depression, and eating behavior scales, and had a night-time videopolysomnography. RESULTS: Patients with SRED were mainly women, had disease onset in adulthood, suffered nightly episodes and insomnia, and had more frequent eating problems in childhood and higher current anorexia scores than sleepwalkers and controls. Unlike controls, they shared several commonalities with sleepwalkers, including a high frequency (66%) of past or current sleepwalking, a similar timing of parasomnia episodes during the first half of the night, numerous arousals from stage N3, and a similarly altered level of daytime sleepiness and anxiety, but higher awareness during parasomnia episodes. Conversely, only 10% of sleepwalkers ate during their sleepwalking episodes. On videopolysomnography, the eating episodes occurred mostly within 1min after awakening from stage N2 (n=9) or stage N3 (n=6). The frequencies of restless legs syndrome, periodic leg movements, and sleep apnea were similar across the three groups. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with SRED share several clinical commonalities with sleepwalkers (although their level of awareness is higher) plus former or current eating behavior problems. It suggests that they have specialized a former sleepwalking behavior toward sleep-related eating because they are more vulnerable to eating behavior problems during the daytime.

Ring the bell for Matins: circadian adaptation to split sleep by cloistered monks and nuns.

Cloistered monks and nuns adhere to a 10-century-old strict schedule with a common zeitgeber of a night split by a 2- to 3-h-long Office (Matins). The authors evaluated how the circadian core body temperature rhythm and sleep adapt in cloistered monks and nuns in two monasteries. Five monks and five nuns following the split-sleep night schedule for 5 to 46 yrs without interruption and 10 controls underwent interviews, sleep scales, and physical examination and produced a week-long sleep diary and actigraphy, plus 48-h recordings of core body temperature. The circadian rhythm of temperature was described by partial Fourier time-series analysis (with 12- and 24-h harmonics). The temperature peak and trough values and clock times did not differ between groups. However, the temperature rhythm was biphasic in monks and nuns, with an early decrease at 19:39 ± 4:30 h (median ± 95% interval), plateau or rise of temperature at 22:35 ± 00:23 h (while asleep) lasting 296 ± 39 min, followed by a second decrease after the Matins Office, and a classical morning rise. Although they required alarm clocks to wake-up for Matins at midnight, the body temperature rise anticipated the nocturnal awakening by 85 ± 15 min. Compared to the controls, the monks and nuns had an earlier sleep onset (20:05 ± 00:59 h vs. 00:00 ± 00:54 h, median ± 95% confidence interval, p= .0001) and offset (06:27 ± 0:22 h, vs. 07:37 ± 0:33 h, p= .0001), as well as a shorter sleep time (6.5 ± 0.6 vs. 7.6 ± 0.7 h, p= .05). They reported difficulties with sleep latency, sleep duration, and daytime function, and more frequent hypnagogic hallucinations. In contrast to their daytime silence, they experienced conversations (and occasionally prayers) in dreams. The biphasic temperature profile in monks and nuns suggests the human clock adapts to and even anticipates nocturnal awakenings. It resembles the biphasic sleep and rhythm of healthy volunteers transferred to a short (10-h) photoperiod and provides a living glance into the sleep pattern of medieval time.

Dopamine dysregulation syndrome in a patient with restless legs syndrome.

A middle-aged architect, suffering from familial, idiopathic, levodopa-responsive restless legs syndrome (RLS) progressively abused levodopa for 10 years, to the point of taking 20 tablets/day (4000 mg/day) for 6 months. Such abuse (possibly linked to the rewarding effect of dopamine) has been recently monitored in the context of Parkinson's disease (PD) (the "dopamine dysregulation syndrome"). Physicians who now routinely treat RLS patients with dopaminergic agents should be aware of this abuse potential. This case also constitutes an experimental model. As levodopa abuse has only been described in patients with PD, it was suspected to be promoted by central dopamine depletion (with consequent sensitization of dopamine receptors). This idea should be revised because functional imaging showed that this RLS patient had no dopamine depletion. Later, he had no impulse disorders (no gambling, hypersexuality, excessive shopping), which occur with dopamine agonists, suggesting that levodopa abuse and impulse disorders can result through different mechanisms.

Dreamlike mentations during sleepwalking and sleep terrors in adults.

BACKGROUND: Sleep terrors and sleepwalking are described as arousals from slow wave sleep with no or poor mental recollection. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the mental content retrospectively associated with sleep terrors or sleepwalking. SETTING: University Hospital. DESIGN: Controlled prospective cohort. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-three patients referred for severe sleepwalking/sleep terrors (age: 26 +/- 7 y, 46% men, 5 with sleep terrors only, 8 with sleepwalking only, and 30 with both), matched with 25 healthy control subjects. INTERVENTION: Thirty-eight of the 43 patients (88%) underwent an interview about the frequency, time, behaviors, and mental content associated with the episodes of sleepwalking and sleep terrors, whenever they occurred over a lifetime. The mental contents were classified for complexity (Orlinski score), and for characters, emotions, fortune/misfortune, and social interactions (Hall and Van de Castle categories). Patients and control subjects underwent an overnight video-polysomnogram. RESULTS: Seventy-one percent of the patients reported at least 1 dreamlike mentation associated with the sleepwalking/sleep terrors episode. The dreamlike mentation action corresponded with the observed behavior. A total of 106 dreamlike mentations were collected (mean: 3 +/- 3.4 dreamlike mentations/patient, range 0-17). Most (95%) dreamlike mentations consisted of a single visual scene. These dreamlike mentations were frequently unpleasant, with aggression in 24% (the dreamer being always the victim), misfortune in 54%, and apprehension in 84%. The patients with dream mentations reported more severe daytime sleepiness. CONCLUSION: Short, unpleasant dreamlike mentations may occur during sleepwalking/sleep terrors episodes, suggesting that a complex mental activity takes place during slow wave sleep. Sleepwalking may thus represent acting out of the corresponding dreamlike mentation.