Sleep disorder, a condition that detracts from well-being

One in 3 adults has difficulty falling asleep, a disorder that is involved in oxidative and inflammatory processes

Insomnia is a difficulty expressed by the organism when it does not achieve a restful sleep, this alteration can have variations in its origin and also dominance over daily performance. High percentages speak of modifications motivated by psychiatric causes such as depression, anxiety and/or the stimulus of some medication for psychiatric treatment, while medical illnesses and sleep disorders due to other causes also have implications on good sleep. Among the neurological diseases that can cause insomnia are nocturnal headaches (cluster headache, chronic paroxysmal hemicrania and hypnic headache).

Main factors that trigger secondary insomnia:

• Affective disorders
• Mood disorders
• Congestive heart failure
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• OSA (obstructive sleep apnea syndrome)
• Asthma
• Cardiovascular disease
• Peptic ulcer
• Gastroesophageal reflux
• Renal insufficiency
• Hyperthyroidism
• Pregnancy
• Menstruation
• Menopause
• Adrenal dysfunction (glands stop producing hormones)
• Parkinson's disease
• Dementia
• Chronic pain
• Food allergy

If this disorder is expressed for less than a week, it is called transient or short term insomnia, if it persists from one to three weeks in addition to pain, stress, grief, noise, transoceanic travel, etc. it is distinguished as acute, and if it continues for more than a month, it is chronic. For the treatment of insomnia in the psychiatric field some medications operate as receptors to promote sleep, hypnotics, benzodiazepines and non-benzodiazepines. Among the best known are Zolpidem, fast acting and with a duration of one to five hours, Zopiclone and Zaleplon, with a duration of 1 hour maximum. It is important to bear in mind that benzodiazepine hypnotics have a high sedative effect and pharmacological dependence, and should be prescribed by the treating physician for a short period of four weeks.

In the behavioral treatment of insomnia, relaxation, stimulus control, sleep restriction or cognitive therapies can be applied, expressing effectiveness alone or in combination with pharmacology. Psychological or psychiatric treatment should be accompanied by anxiolytics and antidepressants, which in turn have a sleep-inducing effect. The decrease in the hours of sleep, increases the pressure of sleep, a chronobiological factor that helps in the programming and the conciliation of sleep in the adjusted hours.

The sleep study, known as polysomnography, is a waveform monitoring that evaluates oxygen levels in the brain, heart and respiratory rate, as well as eye and leg movements. This study not only tests for sleep disorders, but is also used to initiate a treatment plan, where it measures Melatonin and cortisol levels.

In patients with biopolymers, el insomnio no sólo representa un síntoma más de la causa médica, también expresa las alteraciones psiquiátricas como la ansiedad y la depresión, elementos que intervienen en el desarrollo y bienestar cotidiano, actualmente existen alternativas para el tratamiento de esta molestia que afecta la salud física y mental.