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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by JohnV on February 24, 2003, at 22:28:27
Risperidone improves sleep in depressed patients
J Clin Psychiatry 2003; 64: 192–196
Risperidone appears to improve sleep efficiency in medication-resistant patients with depression, say researchers, an action that is characteristic of conventional antidepressants.
Ann Sharpley and colleagues found that both rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and time spent awake were significantly reduced in eight depressed patients given the atypical antipsychotic risperidone. All of whom had failed to respond satisfactorily to antidepressant therapy.
After the patients had been taking 0.5–1.0 mg/day of risperidone for 2 weeks, polysomnograph readings revealed a reduction in REM sleep from 107.1 minutes to 66.3 minutes. They also spent less time awake, at 31.8 minutes, compared with 60.6 minutes before treatment, and more time in stage 2 sleep (232.9 minutes versus 172.3 minutes).
The researchers note that the reduced time the patients spent awake was significantly correlated with a clinical improvement in depressive symptoms, as measured by a decline in scores on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, from 20.6 to 11.5.
This suggests that "the effects of risperidone on sleep architecture, or the pharmacologic mechanisms that regulate it may be relevant to any antidepressant effect it possesses," say the researchers.
"Further randomized investigations will be needed to assess whether risperidone may have value as adjunct in the treatment of depression."
J Clin Psychiatry 2003; 64: 192–196
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