Registry and survey of circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorder patients

Abstract

Objective

Circadian Sleep Disorders Network has created a registry of circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorder (CRSWD) patients, and a survey of their experiences. The purpose of the registry is to provide volunteers willing to participate in research; the purpose of the survey is to fill some of the knowledge gaps on these disorders, including information on subjective patient experience and the efficacy and durability of treatments.

Researchers are invited to contact Circadian Sleep Disorders Network for permission to use the registry to find potential research participants, and to further analyze the survey data.

Patients

Over 1627 patients have participated; 1298 have completed the entire survey. Here we present results based on the 479 clinically diagnosed CRSWD patients.

Methods

The survey covers a variety of topics relating to CRSWDs, including diagnosis, comorbidities, treatments, and work/educational accommodations.

Conclusions

Results of this survey diverged from much of the literature. More than half the participants reported tiredness even when sleeping on their preferred schedule. While depression may cause sleep problems, our data suggests that sleep/circadian problems often precede depression.

There were more people suffering from sighted non-24-hour sleep-wake rhythm disorder than some of the literature would lead us to expect.

Current treatments did not appear to be helpful to a large percentage of our participants. Most of them did not find light therapy helpful and nearly all participants who tried phase-delay chronotherapy reported at best only short-term improvement. A sizable proportion of people who tried phase-delay chronotherapy subsequently developed non-24-hour sleep-wake rhythm disorder.