How Much Sleep Is Enough?
Individual Variation
– Sleep deprived have ↓latency and ↑ sleep drive
Sleep duration not a true reflection of need – tolerance to sleep debt/adenosine
Physiologic studies of normal adults – 8 hours/night (young adults)
– 7.5 hours/night (elderly)
Sleep-Heart Health Study – 7.2 hrs/night
Sleepy vs. Excessive Sleepiness
Sleepiness (somnolence) – a normal and expected effect mediated by endogenous homeostatic processes, circadian rhythms, metabolic expenditure, and prolonged wakefulness
Excessive Sleepiness (hypersomnolence)– pathologic state of inappropriate sleepiness that impairs normal daytime function or results in the inappropriate onset of sleep
30% of Americans suffer from this.
Insomnia
• 2 flavors:
– Chronic insomnia disorder
– Short-term insomnia disorder
• Main distinction: Duration is either greater than or less than 3 months
• For chronic insomnia, symptoms must be present at least 3 days per week
Insomnia- common features
• The patient (or parent/caregiver) report:
– Difficulty maintaining sleep
– Waking up earlier than desired
– Bedtime resistance
– Difficulty sleeping without parent/caregiver intervention
Insomnia- common features
Results in one of more daytime consequences:
– Fatigue/malaise
– Attention, concentration, memory impairment
– Impaired social, family, occupational or academic performance
– Mood disturbance/irritability
– Daytime sleepiness
– Behavioral problems (hyperactive, impulsive)
– Reduced motivation/energy/initiative
– Proneness for errors/accidents
– Concerns about dissatisfaction with sleep
Insomnia- common features-continued
• The reported sleep/wake complaints cannot be explained purely by inadequate opportunity (i.e. enough time allotted for sleep) or inadequate circumstances (i.e. environment is safe, dark, quiet and comfortable) for sleep
Modern Sleep Habits
Over the past 30 years, self-reported sleep duration ↓ by 1.5 - 2 h among Americans
>50% of Teenagers obtain <7hrs sleep/night (2014)
Young adults reporting <7 h sleep per night – 15.6% in 1960
– 37.1% in 2002
– 64.4% in 2012
Sleep habits in 2012: (mean sleep duration) – American adults – 6.8 hr/night
– Military – 6.2 hr/night
– Urban professionals – 5.8 hr/night
– Surgical residents – 5.6 hr/night
© 2020 Sleep Apnea Treatment Greenville, SC | Dental Sleep Medicine of Greenville | All Rights Reserved.