What are patients completing Cognitive Behavioral Insomnia Therapy telling us with their post-treatment Insomnia Severity Index scores?

The network structures of depressive and insomnia symptoms among cancer patients using propensity score matching: Findings from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS)

OBJECTIVE

Both depression and insomnia are found to be more prevalent in cancer patients compared to the general population. This study compared the network structures of depression and insomnia among cancer patients versus cancer-free participants (controls hereafter).

METHOD

The 8-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD-8) and the 4-item Jenkins Sleep Scale (JSS-4) were used to measure depressive and insomnia symptoms, respectively. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to construct the control group using data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). In total, a sample consisting of 2216 cancer patients and 2216 controls was constructed. Central (influential) and bridge symptoms were estimated using the expected influence (EI) and bridge expected influence (bridge EI), respectively. Network stability was assessed using the case-dropping bootstrap method.

RESULT

The prevalence of depression (CESD-8 total score ≥ 4) in cancer patients was significantly higher compared to the control group (28.56 % vs. 24.73 %; P = 0.004). Cancer patients also had more severe depressive symptoms relative to controls, but there was no significant group difference for insomnia symptoms. The network structures of depressive and insomnia symptoms were comparable between cancer patients and controls. "Felt sadness" (EI: 6.866 in cancer patients; EI: 5.861 in controls), "Felt unhappy" (EI: 6.371 in cancer patients; EI: 5.720 in controls) and "Felt depressed" (EI: 6.003 in cancer patients; EI: 5.880 in controls) emerged as the key central symptoms, and "Felt tired in morning" (bridge EI: 1.870 in cancer patients; EI: 1.266 in controls) and "Everything was an effort" (bridge EI: 1.046 in cancer patients; EI: 0.921 in controls) were the key bridge symptoms across both groups.

CONCLUSION

Although cancer patients had more frequent and severe depressive symptoms compared to controls, no significant difference was observed in the network structure or strength of the depressive and insomnia symptoms. Consequently, psychosocial interventions for treating depression and insomnia in the general population could be equally applicable for cancer patients who experience depression and insomnia.

Sleep effort and its measurement: A scoping review

Insomnia disorder is characterized by disruption in sleep continuity and an overall dissatisfaction with sleep. A relevant feature of insomnia is sleep effort, which refers to both cognitive and behavioural conscious attempts to initiate sleep. The Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale is a self-report tool developed to assess this construct. The objective of the current scoping review was to map how sleep effort has been discussed in the literature and operationalized through its respective measure. Medline/PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and PsycInfo databases were used to search for potential studies. The search query used in databases was the specific name of the self-reported tool itself (Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale) and "sleep effort" term. This scoping review followed JBI guidelines. To be included, records pertaining to any type of study that mentioned the Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale were considered. No language constraint was used. At the end, 166 initial records were retrieved. From those, 46 records met eligibility criteria and were analysed. Among the main findings, it was observed that the Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale has been increasingly used in recent years, with a notable observed upward trend, especially in the last 2 years. In addition to the original measure, only three published adapted versions of the instrument were identified. This suggests that there is limited research on adapting the scale for different populations or contexts. Sleep effort has been increasingly studied in the last few years. Nonetheless, more research on the Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale tool is recommended, including cross-cultural adaptations.

An Investigation of Further Strategies to Optimize Early Treatment Gains in Brief Therapies for Insomnia

OBJECTIVES

Identifying those who are most (and least) likely to benefit from a stepped-care approach to cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) increases access to insomnia therapies while minimizing resource consumption. The present study investigates non-targeted factors in a single-session of CBT-I that may act as barriers to early response and remission.

METHODS

Participants (N = 303) received four sessions of CBT-I and completed measures of subjective insomnia severity, fatigue, sleep-related beliefs, treatment expectations, and sleep diaries. Subjective insomnia severity and sleep diaries were completed between each treatment session. Early response was defined as a 50% reduction in Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) scores and early remission was defined by < 10 on the ISI after the first session.

RESULTS

A single-session of CBT-I significantly reduced subjective insomnia severity scores and diary total wake time. Logistic regression models indicated that lower baseline fatigue was associated with increased odds of early remission (B = -.05, p = .02), and lower subjective insomnia severity (B = -.13, p = .049). Only fatigue was a significant predictor of early treatment response (B = -.06, p = .003).

CONCLUSIONS

Fatigue appeared to be an important construct that dictates early changes in perceived insomnia severity. Beliefs about the relationship between sleep and daytime performance may hinder perceived improvements in insomnia symptoms. Incorporating fatigue management strategies and psychoeducation about the relationship between sleep and fatigue may target non-early responders. Future research would benefit from further profiling potential early insomnia responders/remitters.