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C C Hoch

Publications and source records attributed to C C Hoch.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Circadian characteristics of healthy 80-year-olds and their relationship to objectively recorded sleep.

Thirty-four healthy older adults (self-described "good sleepers") in their ninth decade of life (16m/18f, mean age 83.1) were compared to 30 young controls in their third decade (21m/9f, mean age 25.5) with regard to: (a) circadian and personality characteristics as measured by the Horne-Ostberg Morningness Questionnaire (HOM), Circadian Type Questionnaire (CTQ) and Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI); (b) measures of habitual bedtime, waketime, and time in bed from a 2-week sleep diary; and (c) polysomnographic measures from a (post-adaptation) night of sleep recording in the laboratory. In almost all laboratory measures the older group slept poorly compared with the young, acquiring about one hour less total recorded sleep. The older group showed earlier habitual time of waking than the young, and showed higher (more "morning-type") scores on test instruments (HOM, CTQ-M) designed to assess morning-evening orientation. They also showed a lack of flexibility in sleep patterns (higher CTQ-Rs score) and less intersubject and intrasubject variability in habitual sleep timing compared to the young. Older subjects' morningness test scores were significantly associated with objectively measured sleep durations, with a tendency toward "morning-type" circadian orientation being associated with longer sleep.

Adult↗

Daytime sleepiness in the healthy "old old": a comparison with young adults.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if excessive daytime sleepiness is an inevitable consequence of aging. METHODS: Daytime sleepiness was measured using Multiple Sleep Latency Tests (MSLT's) before and after a night of total sleep deprivation in a sample of 22 healthy men and women in their eighties and 29 men and women in their twenties. RESULTS: Young adults were somewhat sleepier than elders, as measured by rapidity of sleep onset during daytime nap recordings using the MSLT, and showed a higher incidence of REM sleep during naps. However, recovery from the effects of acute sleep loss was slower in the elderly, judging from the presence of more daytime sleepiness 2 days after a night of total sleep deprivation. Such persistent sleepiness was absent in the young adult control group. CONCLUSIONS: Healthy persons in late old age may have a level of daytime sleepiness no greater than, and perhaps even less than, that seen in healthy young adults.

Adult↗

Sleep in late-life recurrent depression. Changes during early continuation therapy with nortriptyline.

The sleep of thirty elderly patients with recurrent unipolar depression was examined at baseline (before acute treatment of the index episode) and again in a state of symptomatic remission with nortriptyline (mean steady-state level: 82.1 ng/ml). Continuation therapy with nortriptyline was associated with improvement of polysomnographic sleep maintenance (mainly in the third and fourth sleep cycles, to a level similar to that of controls), prolongation of rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep latency (exceeding that of controls), and potentiation of slow-wave activity during the first non-REM (NREM) sleep period. Clinical improvement, as measured by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, was significantly associated with shift of delta activity toward sleep onset (p less than 0.002), prolongation of REM sleep latency (p less than 0.0001), and improvement in sleep maintenance (p less than 0.0002). Multiple regression analysis showed that the single best correlate of clinical change was prolongation of REM sleep latency (i.e., prolongation of first NREM period). Perceived sleep quality improved significantly during early continuation therapy with nortriptyline, but not to the level reported by a group of 30 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. The findings are consistent with the concept that anti-depressant drug efficacy may depend upon strengthening of the homeostatic regulation of sleep and upon changes in the REM-sleep regulation.

Aged↗

Quantification of subjective sleep quality in healthy elderly men and women using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)

Subjective sleep quality deteriorates with aging, but the extent to which this is a product of age itself, as opposed to the medical or psychiatric problems associated with aging, has not been carefully studied. To investigate this issue, we examined the subjective sleep quality of 44 healthy subjects over 80 years of age (20 men, 24 women), and 35 healthy subjects [corrected] between the ages of 20 and 30 (23 men, 12 women) using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). All subjects underwent rigorous medical and psychiatric evaluations to verify that they were in excellent physical and psychological health. Significant age effects were noted for the global PSQI score and several PSQI component scores, but overall sleep quality for the majority (68.1%) of 80-yr-olds fell within a categorically defined range for "good" sleepers. Measures of habitual sleep quality did not correlate strongly with most polysomnographic sleep measures, number of medications used or circadian measures in elderly subjects. These results show that subjective sleep quality does deteriorate in the healthy elderly, but not to the level seen in patients with sleep disorders. Extremely healthy elderly subjects appear to adapt in their perception of objectively disturbed sleep.

Aged↗

Acute open-trial nortriptyline therapy of bereavement-related depression in late life.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to generate preliminary data on the clinical efficacy of nortriptyline in bereavement-related depression in late life. METHODS: Data are presented on 13 patients (5 men, 8 women), ranging in age from 61 to 78 years (mean = 71.1). Mean time from spousal loss to the beginning of treatment was 11.9 months (range 2-25). Subjects were required to meet Research Diagnostic Criteria for syndromal current major depression and to have a stable Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) score of greater than or equal to 15. Ten of the 13 volunteers were experiencing their first lifetime episode of major depression. Patients were treated with nortriptyline (mean dose = 49.2 mg/day; mean steady-state level = 68.1 ng/mL). Ratings performed at base-line and weekly during therapy were used to assess symptomatology, intensity of grief, level of functioning, social support, physical impairment, and medication side effects. RESULTS: Pretreatment HAM-D ratings average 22.1 +/- 3.6; posttreatment, 7.2 +/- 2.8, representing a 67.9% decrease. All other rating scales showed significant clinical improvement, except the Texas Revised Inventory of Grief (a measure of grief intensity) (pretreatment, 51.4 +/- 7.3; posttreatment, 46.6 +/- 6.9, only a 9.3% decrease). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that nortriptyline is associated with significant symptomatic improvement in all areas of bereavement-related depression except continued intensity of grief after a median treatment interval of 6.4 weeks. This study indicates the need for a controlled clinical trial to determine the placebo response rate, the relapse rate after discontinuation of medication, and the value of combination therapy (using both pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy).

Age Factors↗

Sleep, gender, and depression: an analysis of gender effects on the electroencephalographic sleep of 302 depressed outpatients.

Gender-related differences in electroencephalographic (EEG) sleep were examined in 151 pairs of men and women with major depression, all outpatients, matched for age and severity of depression. Across five decades (age 21-69), depressed men had less slow-wave sleep than did depressed women. Gender differences were small with respect to visually scored measures of slow-wave sleep time and percent, but moderate for gender differences in automated measures of slow-wave density. The time constant of the polygraph preamplifier significantly affected both visually scored and automatically scored slow-wave sleep. Other measures such as REM sleep latency, first REM period duration, sleep efficiency, and early morning awakening, showed robust age effects, but no main effects for gender or gender-by-age interactions. Gender effects on slow-wave sleep and delta-wave counts in depression parallel gender effects seen in healthy aging. The possibility of occult alcohol use by depressed male outpatients cannot be definitely excluded as a partial explanation of the current findings. However, covarying for past alcohol abuse did not negate the statistical significance of the observed gender effects on slow-wave sleep and delta-wave density. The possibility of gender differences in slow-wave regulatory mechanisms is suggested, but similarity in temporal distribution of delta-wave density between the first and second non-rapid-eye-movement (NREM) periods does not support gender differences in slow-wave sleep regulation.

Adult↗

Rapid eye movement sleep deprivation as a probe in elderly subjects.

The effects of a 2-night rapid eye movement (REM) sleep deprivation (RSD) procedure on electroencephalographic sleep and mood were examined in 15 healthy elderly control subjects, 14 elderly patients with endogenous depression, and 15 patients with primary degenerative dementia. Compared with control subjects, both patient groups maintained a higher amount of REM sleep time and REM activity during RSD. Unexpectedly, depressed patients showed little rebound in visually scored or automated REM sleep measures following RSD, and they showed stability of REM activity temporal distribution from baseline to recovery conditions. This contrasted with the rebound in REM sleep activity seen in control subjects, and the more modest increase in demented patients. The RSD was fairly specific, with some impact on delta sleep during the procedure but not during recovery sleep. Mood ratings were unaffected by RSD. These findings demonstrated a greater plasticity of REM sleep regulation in the healthy elderly control subjects and suggested a higher REM "pressure" with a "ceiling effect" in depressed patients. Patients with dementia appeared to have an impaired capacity to respond to the challenge of RSD.

Affect↗

Comparison of sleep-disordered breathing among healthy elderly in the seventh, eighth, and ninth decades of life.

We investigated the prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in healthy 80 year-old subjects (n = 38) as compared with healthy 70-(n = 33) and 60-year-old subjects (n = 34). The apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) increased significantly across decades: 39.5% (15 of 38) of 80 year olds, 33.3% (11 of 33) of 70 year olds, and 2.9% (1 of 34) of 60 year olds had an AHI greater than or equal to 5 (chi 2 = 14.0, p less than 0.001). The prevalence of SDB as measured by a more stringent apnea index criterion of greater than or equal to 5 was 18.9% of those in their 80s, 12.1% in their 70s, and 0% in their 60s (chi 2 = 6.63, p less than 0.05). Significant gender differences were noted in the proportion of subjects with AHI greater than or equal to 10: 22.4% of men versus 5.4% of women (chi 2 = 4.25, p less than 0.05). These data suggest that SDB increases with advancing age even in the healthy elderly and may be more marked in healthy men than women.

Aged↗

Sleep stage physiology, mood, and vigilance responses to total sleep deprivation in healthy 80-year-olds and 20-year-olds.

Little is known about sleep and the effects of total sleep loss in the 'old old' (i.e., 80-year-olds). We investigated sleep, mood, and performance responses to acute sleep deprivation in healthy 80-year-olds (n = 10) and 20-year-olds (n = 14). The protocol consisted of three nights of baseline sleep, one night of total sleep deprivation, and two nights of recovery sleep. Mood and vigilance were tested using visual analog scales and a Mackworth clock procedure in the morning and evening of each study day. Daytime sleepiness was measured by five naps on the days following the third and sixth nights. Old subjects had lower sleep efficiency and less delta sleep than young subjects. However, sleep continuity and delta sleep were enhanced in both groups on the first recovery night, indicating that sleep changes in old subjects are at least partially reversible by this procedure. Surprisingly, young subjects had shorter daytime sleep latencies than the old, suggesting a greater unmet sleep need in the former group. Mood and performance were disturbed by sleep loss in both groups, but to a greater extent among the young. This suggests that acute total sleep loss is a more disruptive procedure for the young than for the old.

Adult↗

Electroencephalographic sleep in late-life neuropsychiatric disorders.

Late-life depression and dementia of the Alzheimer's type both have profound, although different, effects on electroencephalographic (EEG) sleep patterns. Thus, while depression is associated with REM sleep disinhibition and extreme sleep fragmentation (e.g., sleep onset REM periods and early morning awakenings), Alzheimer's disease is associated with deficits in the production of phasic activity during sleep (e.g., rapid eye movements and K-complexes) and with increased rates of sleep-disordered breathing. These differences have been shown to be reliable in large numbers of patients during the past five years and appear to extend to differences in sleep between depressive pseudodementia and dementia with secondary depression. Preliminary data also suggest that pretreatment sleep onset REM periods may be associated with enhanced vulnerability to recurrent depression. In summary, sleep physiological measures provide useful diagnostic and prognostic indexes in late-life neuropsychiatric disorders.

Aged↗

Clinical significance of sleep-disordered breathing in Alzheimer's disease. Preliminary data.

In a study of 15 probable Alzheimer's patients and 12 healthy elderly control subjects, Alzheimer's patients had a significantly higher apnea index (patients versus controls, mean +/- SD: 6.3 +/- 6.6 vs 1.8 +/- 2.7, P less than .05) and greater maximal duration of apnea (patients versus controls, median: 50.0 vs 28.5 seconds, P less than .001), but no significant increase in oxyhemoglobin desaturation compared with controls. (The accepted normal threshold for abnormality is an apnea index more than 5.) Although three of seven psychometric tests (odd-even, category retrieval, face-hand test) showed diurnal effects on one or more of their subscores, with Alzheimer's patients having significantly poorer scores at the AM than at PM testing, overnight change scores in the psychometric tests were not significantly correlated with severity of sleep-disordered breathing. Further, only 18.1% of the disruptive (ie, requiring intervention) nocturnal behaviors of the Alzheimer's patients were temporally linked to sleep-disordered breathing. The current data suggest that sleep-disordered breathing in nonmedicated Alzheimer's patients is relatively mild and is not a predictor of either overnight mental status changes, of disruptive nocturnal behaviors, or of daytime behavioral fluctuations. Additional studies of more severely demented patients and possibly of sleeping pill effects would be useful in further evaluating the role of sleep apnea in Alzheimer behavioral changes.

Aged↗

Predicting mortality in mixed depression and dementia using EEG sleep variables.

The authors report a study of electroencephalographic (EEG) sleep predictors of two-year mortality in 26 elderly patients with mixed symptoms of depression and cognitive impairment. Patients who had died by two-year follow-up were characterized by significantly longer rapid eye movement (REM) sleep latencies at baseline, less robust REM sleep rebound following all-night sleep deprivation, and baseline apnea-hypopnea indexes greater than 3. Logistic regression analysis using the apnea-hypopnea index value and REM latency correctly predicted 77% of survivors and non-survivors. Survival time following initial measurements was significantly correlated with REM sleep time (r = 0.78, p less than .02) and duration of first REM sleep period (r = 0.75, p less than .02). The authors speculate that changes in these predictor variables may indicate impairment in the cholinergic control of cognitive function, REM sleep, and respiratory function.

Aged↗

Sleep and depression in late life.

Depression is one of the most serious and prevalent neuropsychiatric disorders of old age. Despite its prevalence, depression in the aged is frequently unrecognized or is misdiagnosed. This article reviews the existing knowledge of several sleep-related areas and discusses possible future studies into sleep as a prognostic indicator for recurrent and bereavement-related depressions in late life.

Aged↗

Reliable discrimination of elderly depressed and demented patients by electroencephalographic sleep data.

Using electroencephalographic sleep data from a sample of 235 elderly subjects, discriminant function analyses of sleep alterations in depression and dementia were performed. Overall, 80% of patients were correctly classified using a backward discriminant function analysis, and 81% with a general stepwise discriminant function analysis. Four measures contributed to the separation of depressed and demented patients: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep latency (lower in depressives); REM sleep percent (higher in depressives); indeterminate non-REM sleep percent (higher in demented patients, reflecting greater loss of spindles and K complexes); and early morning awakening (more marked in depressives). When both discriminant functions were subjected to cross-validation in independent subsamples, both procedures correctly identified 78% of patients. The classification functions derived from nondemented depressed and nondepressed demented patients were applied to a mixed-symptom group (n = 42). Overall, 27 patients (64%) with either depressive pseudodementia or dementia with depressive features were correctly classified using the same four predictor variables. These findings suggest that sleep physiological alterations of depression and dementia reflect between-group differences in sleep continuity, sleep architecture, and REM sleep temporal distribution, and that the differences are statistically reliable, in both diagnostically pure and mixed clinical presentations. These findings are discussed in the context of current hypotheses of sleep regulation and its mechanisms.

Age Factors↗

Electroencephalographic sleep in depressive pseudodementia.

Twenty-six patients with mixed symptoms of depression and cognitive impairment were studied with serial clinical ratings and sleep electroencephalograms during a one-night sleep-deprivation procedure. A subgroup of these patients with depressive pseudodementia (n = 8) had less severe symptoms of dementia at baseline and showed significant improvements in both Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores and Profile of Mood States tension scores following sleep deprivation, while another subgroup of patients having primary degenerative dementia with depression (n = 18) showed no change or worsening in Hamilton depression and Profile of Mood States tension ratings. Baseline sleep measures demonstrated significantly higher rapid eye movement (REM) percent and phasic REM activity/intensity in pseudodemented compared with demented patients. While both groups had increases in sleep efficiency, sleep maintenance, and slow-wave sleep following sleep deprivation, recovery night 2 was characterized by greater first REM period duration in depressive pseudodementia than in dementia. These differences in REM sleep rebound (using an REM period 1 cutoff of greater than or equal to 25 minutes) permitted correct identification of 88.5% of patients. Implications of these data for current theories regarding sleep, aging, and psychopathology are discussed.

Aged↗

Stability of EEG sleep and sleep quality in healthy seniors.

When the electroencephalogram-recorded (EEG) sleep of 19 healthy seniors (9 men, 10 women) aged 60-82 years was restudied after an average interval of 2.2 years, most measures of EEG sleep and sleep quality were stable over time. Both elderly men and women showed more awakenings during the second recording series, but no change in visual or computer-scored delta activity. Furthermore, gender-dependent sleep changes were noted only in phasic rapid eye movement (REM) measures (increasing in men, decreasing in women). Reports of sleep quality were also stable over time despite the increase in awakenings, with women reporting a lower sleep quality than men.

Aged↗

Bedside differentiation of depressive pseudodementia from dementia.

The authors analyzed the pretreatment clinical presentations of 14 patients with depressive pseudodementia and 28 patients with primary degenerative dementia as measured by the Mini-Mental State, the Blessed Dementia Rating Scale, and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. They found that patients with pseudodementia showed significantly greater pretreatment early morning awakening, higher ratings of psychological anxiety, and more severe impairment of libido. Patients with dementia, however, showed significantly more disorientation to time, greater difficulty finding their way about familiar streets or indoors, and more impairment with dressing. The authors suggest that these findings be considered preliminary.

Aged↗