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Biomedical subjects

Daniel F Kripke

Publications and source records attributed to Daniel F Kripke.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Naps and circadian rhythms in postmenopausal women.

BACKGROUND: Napping patterns and relationships among naps, circadian rhythms, and nocturnal sleep were evaluated in postmenopausal women. Naps and nocturnal sleep were compared between depressed women and healthy volunteers. METHODS: The study included 436 postmenopausal women between the ages of 50 and 81 years. Psychiatric interviews were conducted using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders. Each participant wore a wrist-activity monitor and kept a daily sleep log at home for 1 week. The major urinary melatonin metabolite (6-sulfatoxymelatonin [aMT6s]) was measured for two 24-hour periods at home. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in naps and nocturnal sleep patterns between depressed participants (n = 30) and those with no history of mental disorder (n = 222). Three peaks occurred in the timing of napping: approximately 1 hour before bedtime, 8 to 9 hours after wake-up time, and 2 hours after waking, in descending order of magnitude. Significant inverse correlations were observed between evening nap duration and both wake-up time and aMT6s acrophase. The onset time of aMT6s excretion was advanced by 32 minutes in evening nappers. CONCLUSIONS: Evening napping, a characteristic of these postmenopausal women, may be related to an advance of circadian rhythms in this age group. Relationships between evening napping and earlier wake-up time may be a common manifestation of advanced circadian rhythms or may be a homeostatic effect.

Aged↗

Menopause: neuroendocrine changes and hormone replacement therapy.

OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the effects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) alone and in combination with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor on mood, cognition, and neuroendocrine parameters in peri- and postmenopausal women. METHODS: We measured neuroendocrine variations in peri- and postmenopausal depressed patients (DP) and postmenopausal normal control (NC) women (45 to 72 years old) before and after treatment with HRT alone and HRT combined with antidepressant medication. All subjects were without significant medical illness and off psychoactive or other medication that would interfere with neuroendocrine measures. RESULTS: Menopausal DP women reported greater severity of hot flashes, were less likely to be "morning" types, and had relatively good neuropsychological function compared with NC. DP and NC had comparable levels of reproductive hormones, with the exception of elevated prolactin levels, which increased, as did thyroid-stimulating hormone levels, in response to estradiol treatment. DP had poor sleep quality as measured both by subjective ratings and objective polysomnographic measures compared with NC. In DP estradiol did not enhance the effect of antidepressant alone on mood ratings. CONCLUSION: These findings may differ from other reports in the literature as a function of diagnoses of major depressive episode, randomized controlled trials, or dose and preparation of HRT. Further work is needed on the differential effect of treatment regimens in these disturbances that are evident primarily in baseline neuroendocrine function.

Affect↗

Measurement of illumination exposure in postpartum women.

BACKGROUND: Low levels of light exposure at critical times are thought to cause seasonal affective disorder. Investigators, in studies demonstrating the usefulness of bright light therapy, also have implicated light's role in non-seasonal depression. The precise cause of postpartum depression has not been delineated, but it seemed possible that new mothers would spend reduced time in daylight. The goal of this study was to examine the levels of illumination experienced by postpartum mothers and to discover any relationship between light exposure and mood levels experienced during the postpartum period. METHODS: Fifteen postpartum women, who did not have any baseline indication of depression, wore a wrist device (Actillume) for 72 hours to measure their exposure to light. At the end of the recording period, they completed a self-reported measure of mood. The mean light exposure of these postpartum women (expressed as the 24-hour average logarithm of illumination in lux) was compared with that of a representative sample of women of comparable age, residence, and seasonal months of recording. Mood levels were then rank-ordered and tested for correlation with light exposure levels. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the amount of light [log10lux] experienced by postpartum (1.01 SD 0.236) and control women (1.06 SD 0.285). Mood was not correlated with illumination in the postpartum sample. CONCLUSIONS: Postpartum women in San Diego did not receive reduced light, nor was low mood related to low illumination.

Adult↗

Melatonin excretion with affect disorders over age 60.

Numerous studies have reported low melatonin secretion in depression, but other studies have suggested no deficit or an increase. Alterations of circadian phase or duration of melatonin secretion have also been described. Since melatonin secretion decreases as we age, it seemed interesting to examine melatonin and depression in an aging sample. Volunteers who complained of mood or sleep problems were recruited for studies in which fractional urine specimens were collected for 24 h, both at home and in the laboratory. The major metabolite, 6-sulfatoxymelatonin (aMT6s), was determined by radioimmunoassay. Of 72 volunteers aged 60-78 years, seven had current major depression and 55% had a lifetime history of an affective disorder. A 55-fold range of home aMT6s excretion rates was observed. A lifetime history of any affective disorder was significantly associated with greater log(10)[mesor] aMT6s excretion in home collections and laboratory collections, but current affective disorders were neither significantly related to melatonin excretion nor to aMT6s acrophase timing, onset, offset or duration. These results are only weakly consistent with a photoperiodic hypothesis of depression.

Aged↗

Luteinizing hormone following light exposure in healthy young men.

Urinary luteinizing hormone (LH) and the melatonin metabolite (6-sulfatoxymelatonin; aMT6s) were measured in normal young men following early morning light exposure. Eleven young healthy men ages 19-30 years participated in this study. During separate weeks in counterbalanced order, each subject received both 5 days of bright light treatment (BL) and 5 days of placebo light treatment (PL) for 1 h (05:00-06:00). LH excretion was increased 69.5% after bright light exposure, but was not changed by placebo light exposure. The acrophases and offsets of aMT6s were advanced, but the duration of aMT6s excretion was not changed after BL. Light stimulation of LH could have interesting applications in psychiatry and reproductive endocrinology.

Adult↗

No association of sleep with total daily physical activity in normal sleepers.

The aim of two studies was to examine both between-subjects and within-subjects associations between daily amounts of physical activity and sleep in the home environment. Study 1 examined self-reported exercise durations and sleep diaries for 105 consecutive days in 31 college students who were normal sleepers. Between-subjects associations of mean exercise with mean sleep were assessed with Spearman rank-order correlations. Within-subjects correlations were determined across 105 days, and by comparing sleep on the 11 most active vs. the 11 least active days. Study 2 examined 71 physically active adults (n=38 ages 18-30 years, and n=33 ages 60-75 years), the majority of whom were normal sleepers. Over seven consecutive days, physical activity was assessed via actigraphy and a diary-derived estimate of energy expenditure, and sleep was assessed via actigraphy and sleep diaries. Between-subjects associations of mean physical activity with mean sleep were assessed with partial correlations, controlling for age. Within-subjects associations were assessed with ANCOVAs, with daily physical activity serving as the covariate, and by comparing sleep on the most active vs. the least active day. No significant within-subjects associations between physical activity and sleep were found in the main analyses of either study. Two small, but significant, between-subjects correlations between different physical activity measures and subjective sleep were found in Study 2. These results fail to support epidemiologic data on the value of exercise for sleep, but are consistent with experimental evidence showing only modest effects of exercise on sleep.

Adolescent↗

Factor structure and measurement invariance of the Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale.

As part of the Women's Health Initiative Study, the 5-item Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale (WHIIRS) was developed. This article summarizes the development of the scale through the use of responses from 66,269 postmenopausal women (mean age = 62.07 years, SD = 7.41 years). All women completed a 10-item questionnaire concerning sleep. A novel resampling technique was introduced as part of the data analysis. Principal-axes factor analysis without iteration and rotation to a varimax solution was conducted for 120,000 random samples of 1,000 women each. Use of this strategy led to the development of a scale with a highly stable factor structure. Structural equation modeling revealed no major differences in factor structure across age and race-ethnic groups. WHIIRS norms for race-ethnicity and age subgroups are detailed.

Age Factors↗

Reliability and validity of the Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale.

The reliability and construct validity of the 5-item Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale (WHIIRS) were evaluated in 2 studies. In Study 1, using a sample of 66,269 postmenopausal women, validity of the WHIIRS was assessed by examining its relationship to other measures known to be related to sleep quality. Reliability of the WHIIRS was estimated using a resampling approach; the mean alpha coefficient was .78. Test-retest reliability coefficients were .96 for same-day administration and .66 after a year or more. Correlations of the WHIIRS with the other measures were in the predicted directions. Study 2 used a sample of 459 women and compared the WHIIRS with objective indicators of sleep quality. Results showed that differences in the objective indicators could be detected by the WHIIRS. Findings suggest that a between-group mean difference of approximately 0.50 of a standard deviation on the WHIIRS may be clinically meaningful.

Aged↗

Actigraphy suggests age-related differences in napping and nocturnal sleep.

The aim of this study was to contrast the time distribution of out-of-bed napping in young and older adults through recordings of wrist activity, and to evaluate the correlates of napping with nocturnal sleep. Seventy-three young adults between 18 and 32 years and 60 older adults between 60 and 75 years of age participated in the study. Subjects were selected for good general health and had few sleep complaints. They wore wrist-activity monitors and kept daily sleep logs for 1 week. Automatic sleep scoring was edited by the authors, supplemented by sleep logs and illumination data as well as activity data. Napping episodes were modestly increased in older adults, but there was no difference in the daily duration of napping. Older adults napped more in the evening (especially within 2 h before bedtime), whereas young adults napped more in the afternoon. The older adults with evening naps (n = 31) showed earlier nocturnal wake-up times and decreased nocturnal sleep duration compared with the older adults without evening naps (n = 29). There was no difference in nocturnal sleep between young adults with afternoon naps (n = 32) and without afternoon naps (n = 41). In determining the effects of napping on nocturnal sleep, timing of napping and age are important. Maintaining alertness during the evening (e.g. by bright light exposure or moderate exercise) would be a possible approach to delay wake-up times in older adults.

Adolescent↗

Age-related changes of circadian rhythms and sleep-wake cycles.

OBJECTIVES: To compare relationships between the sleep-wake cycle and endogenous circadian rhythms in young and older adults and to examine correlates between evening naps and circadian rhythms in older adults. DESIGN: For 1 week of home recording, subjects wore wrist-activity monitors and kept daily sleep logs. After the home monitoring, subjects entered the laboratory on a 90-minute sleep-wake schedule and were monitored on this schedule for at least 30 hours. SETTING: Community living and laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: Sixty-seven young adults, aged 18 to 32, and 56 older adults, aged 60 to 75, who were healthy and had few sleep complaints. MEASUREMENTS: Times of nocturnal sleep, out-of-bed napping, and illumination were obtained at home. Sleep propensity and oral body temperature (OBT) were measured in the laboratory, along with circadian rhythms of cortisol and 6-sulfatoxymelatonin (aMT6s, assayed from urine samples collected every 90 minutes). RESULTS: Home sleep times and illumination acrophases (fitted peak times) were advanced in older adults. The phase angles (time intervals) between onset of aMT6s and sleep onset were not changed in older adults, but sleep offset was more advanced than acrophase and offset of aMT6s with aging. Acrophases of cortisol and sleep propensity were advanced in older adults to the same extent as sleep times, but OBT was less advanced than sleep times. Older adults who took evening naps showed more advanced sleep offset and circadian rhythms of aMT6s, but there were no differences in the phase angles of sleep onset and circadian rhythms of aMT6s and cortisol compared with older adults who did not take evening naps. CONCLUSION: Measuring different circadian markers suggested different phase relationships between the sleep-wake cycle and endogenous circadian rhythms in aging. Early awakening in older adults cannot be explained simply by a relative phase advance of the circadian system. Evening naps and advanced illumination may play a role in the advance of the circadian system in aging.

Adolescent↗

PRC bisection tests.

This communication presents a new method for evaluating phase response curves (PRCs). A PRC describes the phase shifts produced in an oscillator by stimuli applied at different initial phase-states of that oscillator. In the PRC bisection tests, we repeatedly cut in half the circular distribution of the initial phase-states of the oscillator when stimuli are given. Empirically, we locate that optimal diameter which best bisects the circular distribution of phase responses into arcs of relative phase advance and phase delay. We compute a D score reflecting the success of the best bisection. The null hypothesis of a random distribution of phase responses by initial phase is tested with a Monte Carlo procedure, which computes Dr scores from random combinations of phase shifts with initial phases, thus determining the probability, given the null hypothesis, that the observed D score was from a random distribution. The bisection procedure can be extended to examine whether stronger phase shifts are produced in one phase response curve than in contrasting curves. Also, the bisection procedure yields an estimate of the inflection point of the phase response curve. A method is given to estimate the power of the PRC bisection test.

Animals↗

Laboratory assessment of diurnal and nocturnal ocular perfusion pressures in humans.

We estimated diurnal and nocturnal levels of ocular perfusion pressure at rest in both young and older adults in a clinical sleep laboratory. Measurements of blood pressure and intraocular pressure (IOP) were obtained every 2 hours for 24 consecutive hours in 16 healthy young adults (ages 18-25 years) and 16 older adults (ages 47-74 years). In the 16-hour diurnal wake period, blood pressure and IOP were measured after a 5-minute sitting rest. In the 8-hour nocturnal period, measurements were taken with subjects in the supine position. Sitting and supine ocular perfusion pressures in the diurnal and nocturnal periods were calculated respectively based upon the blood pressure and IOP. Ocular perfusion pressure was found to be higher in the older group than in the younger group throughout the 24 hours. The peak of ocular perfusion pressure was in the nocturnal period for both groups. Within each subject group, the average nocturnal ocular perfusion pressure in the supine position was higher than the average diurnal ocular perfusion pressure in the sitting position. The diurnal-to-nocturnal increase of ocular perfusion pressure was larger in the older group than in the younger group.

Adolescent↗

Twenty-four-hour intraocular pressure pattern associated with early glaucomatous changes.

PURPOSE: To characterize the 24-hour pattern of intraocular pressure (IOP) in untreated patients with newly diagnosed early glaucomatous changes. METHODS: Measurements of IOP, blood pressure, and heart rate were taken every 2 hours during a 24-hour period from a group of 24 untreated patients (ages 40-78 years) with newly diagnosed abnormal optic discs and/or abnormal visual fields. In the 16-hour diurnal awake period, IOP was measured sitting and supine, and blood pressure and heart rate were measured supine. In the 8-hour nocturnal sleep period, all measurements were taken in the supine position. Mean diurnal and nocturnal IOP, blood pressure, and heart rate in the glaucoma group were compared with data obtained from an age-matched control group of 24 individuals with healthy eyes. RESULTS: Mean diurnal IOP, either sitting or supine, was significantly higher in the glaucoma group than in the control group. For both subject groups, nocturnal supine IOP was higher than diurnal sitting IOP. However, this diurnal-to-nocturnal increase in IOP was significantly smaller in the glaucoma group. When compared with the diurnal supine IOP, the nocturnal supine IOP was lower in the glaucoma group but higher in the control group. Around normal awakening time, the supine IOP increased in the glaucoma group and did not change in the control group. There was a diurnal-to-nocturnal decrease in mean blood pressure only in the glaucoma group. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with healthy eyes, the diurnal IOP is higher, the diurnal-to-nocturnal change of habitual IOP is less, and the posture-independent IOP pattern around normal awakening time is different in eyes with early glaucomatous changes.

Adult↗

Nocturnal elevation of intraocular pressure is detectable in the sitting position.

PURPOSE: When intraocular pressure (IOP) was monitored in supine healthy young adults throughout a 24-hour period, a diurnal-to-nocturnal elevation of IOP was observed. This study was undertaken to investigate whether a similar elevation of IOP can be detected when experimental subjects are in the sitting position. METHODS: Experimental subjects were 16 nonsmoking, healthy young volunteers (ages, 18-25 years). Subjects with myopia of more than 3 D were excluded. They were housed in a sleep laboratory for 24 hours in a strictly controlled environment. An 8-hour nocturnal/sleep period was assigned to each volunteer according to the individual's accustomed sleep cycle. IOP was measured every 2 hours with a pneumatonometer with the volunteers in both sitting and supine positions. Mean diurnal-to-nocturnal IOP change and the cosine-fit 24-hour IOP rhythm were compared between the sitting and the supine IOP data. RESULTS: Mean IOP was significantly higher in the nocturnal period than in the diurnal/wake period for both the sitting and the supine IOPs. The 24-hour IOP troughs appeared at the end of the diurnal period, and the peaks appeared at the end of the nocturnal period. The difference between the trough and the peak was 3.8 +/- 0.6 mm Hg (mean +/- SEM) in the sitting position and 3.4 +/- 0.6 mm Hg in the supine position. Cosine-fitting of 24-hour IOP data showed a synchronized 24-hour rhythm of the sitting and the supine IOPs for the group. There was no difference in the phase timing or the magnitude of variation between these two 24-hour rhythms of sitting and supine IOPs. CONCLUSIONS: A nocturnal elevation of IOP can be detected in healthy young adults in both the sitting and the supine positions. There is a 24-hour rhythm of sitting IOP that is not different from the 24-hour rhythm of supine IOP.

Adolescent↗

Efficacy of enhanced evening light for advanced sleep phase syndrome.

This study tested whether a newly designed enhanced evening light therapy was well tolerated and effective in relieving symptoms of Advanced, Sleep Phase Syndrome (ASPS). Participants with self-reported ASPS symptoms were 47 older adults (21 men and 26 women, age 60-86). After baseline, participants underwent 28 consecutive days of either dim or enhanced intensity light treatment for 2-3 hr in the evening. Enhanced evening light (approximately 265 lux) exposure was no more effective than a placebo dim light (approximately 2 lux) at alleviating advanced sleep phase as measured by actigraphically recorded sleep and urinary 6-sulphatoxymelatonin (aMT6s) excretion patterns. Participants receiving the enhanced light reported subjective benefit and a significant delay in sleep onset as compared to the placebo. Although compliance was good and the new enhanced evening light therapy design was well tolerated, the benefits were statistically equivocal.

Aged↗

Long-term follow-up of periodic limb movements in sleep in older adults.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to examine the natural history of periodic limb movements in sleep (PLMS) in older adults. DESIGN: Prospective, longitudinal design. SETTING: San Diego area. PARTICIPANTS: Community-dwelling older adults. INTERVENTIONS: NA MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Subjects participated in follow-up visits every few years. Sleep disorders were assessed at each visit using sleep questionnaires and overnight sleep recordings. Changes in PLMS over time were examined as well as variables that were associated with change. Average PLMS did not change over time, although there was considerable variability within the sample. In women, changes in PLMS were associated with changes in sleep-disordered breathing. This relationship was not found in men. CONCLUSIONS: Although the prevalence of PLMS is high for older adults, the severity of the disorder does not progressively worsen with increasing age.

Adult↗