Sleep-Wake Disorders & DSM-5

Research Paper Title

Sleep-wake disorders and DSM-5.

Background

Most individuals with mental disorders complain about the problems they experience with sleeping and waking. It is becoming evident that careful diagnosis of sleep-wake disorders is of great importance for the prevention and treatment of mental disorders. Since the introduction of the DSM-IV, clinical scientific research has provided important new insights in this field.

Therefore the aim of this research was to find out whether the new classification of sleep-wake disorders in DSM-5 is likely to improve the diagnosis of disorders of this type.

Method

The researchers discuss the main changes in the DSM-5 classification of sleep- wake disorders, comparing the new version with the version in DSM-IV.

Results

Because considerable attention is being given to the symptom-orientated and dimensional approach, the classification of sleep-wake disorders in the DSM-5 is closer to current psychiatric practice and it does justice to the current scientific insights into the dimensional nature of psychiatric disorders.

Conclusions

The DSM-5 classification takes recent scientific insights into account and might help to improve the diagnosis of sleep-wake disorders in psychiatry.

Reference

van Bemmel, A.L. & Kerkhof, G.A. (2020) Sleep-wake disorders and DSM-5. Tijdschrift voor Psychiatrie. 56(3), pp.192-195.

Book: Sleep Medicine and Mental Health

Book Title:

Sleep Medicine and Mental Health – A Guide for Psychiatrists and Other Healthcare Professionals.

Author(s): Karim Sedky, Racha Nazir, and David Bennett (Editors).

Year: 2020.

Edition: First (1st).

Publisher: Springer.

Type(s): Hardcover and Kindle.

Synopsis:

Advances in sleep medicine research are improving our clinical work for individuals with sleep problems. The aim of this book is to educate psychiatrists and other mental health professionals about the importance of understanding sleep disorders, including their bidirectional relationship with psychiatric conditions.

This book consists of six major sections with seventeen chapters. It is led off by an introduction on the function of sleep, its neurophysiology, and types of sleep problems. Since insomnia represents a common and significant challenge for patients with psychiatric disorders, its clinical presentation and treatments are reviewed in the second section. Cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), mindfulness-based CBT, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and the medication management of insomnia are reviewed.

A third section addresses sleep related breathing disorders. The pathology of sleep apnea, its treatments, and therapeutic modalities to address non-compliance with positive pressure ventilation are reviewed. Other sleep disorders such as hypersomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, movement disorders and parasomnias are discussed in the fourth section.

Since features of sleep disorders can vary by age, gender, and trauma history, a fifth section discusses the unique sleep problems associated with children, women, older adults, and veterans. The book concludes with a final section discussing how sleep disorders and psychiatric conditions overlap.

We hope this book highlights the importance of understanding and addressing comorbid sleep disorders among individuals with psychiatric conditions. We are confident that this book will be valuable in helping clinicians improve the management of sleep disorders in their clinical practice.