Sleep Disturbances & Circadian Rhythm Disruptions in Schizophrenia v1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Nocturnal Sleep Disturbances and Circadian Rhythm Disruptions in Patients with Schizophrenia
IRAS ID
149820
Contact name
Oliver Mason
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2014/05/32, Data Protection Registration
Research summary
Sleep in patients with schizophrenia is often characterised by frequent sleep complaints and abnormal sleep-wake cycles, which may reflect an underlying circadian misalignment. Increasing attention has been directed to the relationship of sleep and circadian rhythm disruptions with the clinical course of schizophrenia. Nonetheless, there has been limited data on the prevalence and correlates of nocturnal sleep disturbances in patients with schizophrenia and how sleep and circadian rhythm disruptions are linked to the daytime psychotic and mood symptoms in this clinical population.
This is a two-phase study. Phase 1 will involve a questionnaire assessment among a consecutive cohort of outpatients with schizophrenia, which will be conducted in a psychiatric outpatient clinic of a university-affiliated hospital in Hong Kong; Phase 2 will be an in-depth case-control study of the clinical and sleep characteristics of schizophrenia patients recruited from outpatient/community services and their matching healthy normal controls, which will be carried out concurrently in both Hong Kong and London. Participants in Phase 2 will be invited to complete a comprehensive assessment (a clinical interview and a battery of questionnaires). Eligible participants will be instructed to wear an actigraph (a small, wristwatch-sized device) over two weeks, during which they will maintain their usual daily activities and fill out a questionnaire on a daily basis.
In Phase 1 we will examine how commonly are nocturnal sleep disturbances, particularly frequent insomnia and frequent nightmares, reported in schizophrenia patients; we will also explore the factors frequently associated with their reported sleep difficulties. In Phase 2 we will examine whether the sleep-wake patterns of patients with schizophrenia are more variable and whether their circadian rhythms are more disrupted as compared to that of normal healthy participants. We will also examine whether poor sleep in patients with schizophrenia affects their daytime psychotic experiences and mood symptoms.
REC name
London - Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/1287
Date of REC Opinion
7 Aug 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion