Reduced overnight memory consolidation and associated alterations in sleep spindles and slow oscillations in early Alzheimer's disease.

Spatial navigation critically underlies hippocampal-entorhinal circuit function that is early affected in Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is growing evidence that AD pathophysiology dynamically interacts with the sleep/wake cycle impairing hippocampal memory. To elucidate sleep-dependent consolidation in a cohort of symptomatic AD patients (n = 12, 71.25 ± 2.16 years), we tested hippocampal place learning by means of a virtual reality task and verbal memory by a word-pair association task before and after a night of sleep. Our results show an impaired overnight memory retention in AD compared with controls in the verbal task, together with a significant reduction of sleep spindle activity (i.e., lower amplitude of fast sleep spindles, p = 0.016) and increased duration of the slow oscillation (SO; p = 0.019). Higher spindle density, faster down-to-upstate transitions within SOs, and the time delay between SOs and nested spindles predicted better memory performance in healthy controls but not in AD patients. Our results show that mnemonic processing and memory consolidation in AD is slightly impaired as reflected by dysfunctional oscillatory dynamics and spindle-SO coupling during NonREM sleep. In this translational study based on experimental paradigms in animals and extending previous work in healthy aging and preclinical disease stages, our results in symptomatic AD further deepen the understanding of the memory decline within a bidirectional relationship of sleep and AD pathology.

Auditory stimulation in-phase with slow oscillations to enhance overnight memory consolidation in patients with schizophrenia?

Sleep-dependent memory consolidation is disturbed in patients with schizophrenia, who furthermore show reductions in sleep spindles and probably also in delta power during sleep. The memory dysfunction in these patients is one of the strongest markers for worse long-term functional outcome. However, therapeutic interventions to normalise memory functions, e.g., with medication, still do not exist. Against this backdrop, we investigated to what extent a non-invasive approach enhancing sleep with real-time auditory stimulation in-phase with slow oscillations might affect overnight memory consolidation in patients with schizophrenia. To this end, we examined 18 patients with stably medicated schizophrenia in a double-blinded sham-controlled design. Memory performance was assessed by a verbal (word list) and a non-verbal (complex figure) declarative memory task. In comparison to a sham condition without auditory stimuli, we found that in patients with schizophrenia, auditory stimulation evokes an electrophysiological response similar to that in healthy participants leading to an increase in slow wave and temporally coupled sleep spindle activity during stimulation. Despite this finding, patients did not show any beneficial effect on the overnight change in memory performance by stimulation. Although the stimulation in our study did not improve the patient's memory, the electrophysiological response gives hope that auditory stimulation could enable us to provide better treatment for sleep-related detriments in these patients in the future.

Dysfunctional Overnight Memory Consolidation in Patients with Schizophrenia in Comparison to Healthy Controls: Disturbed Slow-Wave Sleep as Contributing Factor?

INTRODUCTION: Memory deficiency has been shown in schizophrenia patients, but results on the role of sleep parameters in overnight consolidation of associative verbal memory are still missing. Therefore, the aim of our study was to elucidate underlying processes of impaired sleep-related consolidation of associative word pairs in schizophrenia including standard sleep parameters as well as sleep spindle counts and spectral analysis. METHODS: Eighteen stably medicated schizophrenia patients and 24 healthy age-matched controls performed an associative declarative memory task before and after polysomnographic recordings. Part of the participants expected verbal associative memory testing in the morning, while the others did not. Furthermore, participants filled in self-rating questionnaires of schizophrenia-typical experiences (Eppendorf Schizophrenia Inventory [ESI] and Psychotic Symptom Rating Scale). RESULTS: Schizophrenia patients performed worse in verbal declarative memory in the evening as well as in overnight consolidation (morning compared to evening performance). While duration of slow-wave sleep was nearly comparable between groups, schizophrenia patients showed lower sleep spindle count, reduced delta power during slow-wave sleep, and reduced spindle power during the slow oscillation (SO) up-state. In healthy but not in schizophrenia patients, a linear relationship between overnight memory consolidation and slow-wave sleep duration as well as delta power was evident. No significant effect with respect to the expectation of memory retrieval was evident in our data. Additionally, we observed a negative linear relationship between total number of sleep spindles and ESI score in healthy participants. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: As expected, schizophrenia patients showed deficient overnight verbal declarative memory consolidation as compared to healthy controls. Reduced sleep spindles, delta power, and spindle power during the SO up-state may link sleep and memory deficiency in schizophrenia. Additionally, the absence of a linear relationship between sleep-related memory consolidation and slow-wave sleep as well as delta power suggests further functional impairments in schizophrenia. Note that this conclusion is based on observational data. Future studies should investigate if stimulation of delta waves during sleep could improve memory performance and thereby quality of life in schizophrenia.

Brain-first versus body-first Parkinson's disease: a multimodal imaging case-control study.

Parkinson's disease is characterized by the presence of abnormal, intraneuronal α-synuclein aggregates, which may propagate from cell-to-cell in a prion-like manner. However, it remains uncertain where the initial α-synuclein aggregates originate. We have hypothesized that Parkinson's disease comprises two subtypes. A brain-first (top-down) type, where α-synuclein pathology initially arises in the brain with secondary spreading to the peripheral autonomic nervous system; and a body-first (bottom-up) type, where the pathology originates in the enteric or peripheral autonomic nervous system and then spreads to the brain. We also hypothesized that isolated REM sleep behaviour disorder (iRBD) is a prodromal phenotype for the body-first type. Using multimodal imaging, we tested the hypothesis by quantifying neuronal dysfunction in structures corresponding to Braak stages I, II and III involvement in three distinct patient groups. We included 37 consecutive de novo patients with Parkinson's disease into this case-control PET study. Patients with Parkinson's disease were divided into 24 RBD-negative (PDRBD-) and 13 RBD-positive cases (PDRBD+) and a comparator group of 22 iRBD patients. We used 11C-donepezil PET/CT to assess cholinergic (parasympathetic) innervation, 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scintigraphy to measure cardiac sympathetic innervation, neuromelanin-sensitive MRI to measure the integrity of locus coeruleus pigmented neurons, and 18F-dihydroxyphenylalanine (FDOPA) PET to assess putaminal dopamine storage capacity. Colon volume and transit times were assessed with CT scans and radiopaque markers. Imaging data from the three groups were interrogated with ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis tests corrected for multiple comparisons. The PDRBD- and PDRBD+ groups showed similar marked reductions in putaminal FDOPA-specific uptake, whereas two-thirds of iRBD patients had normal scans (P < 10-13, ANOVA). When compared to the PDRBD- patients, the PDRBD+ and iRBD patients showed reduced mean MIBG heart:mediastinum ratios (P < 10-5, ANOVA) and colon 11C-donepezil standard uptake values (P = 0.008, ANOVA). The PDRBD+ group trended towards a reduced mean MRI locus coeruleus: pons ratio compared to PDRBD- (P = 0.07, t-test). In comparison to the other groups, the PDRBD+ group also had enlarged colon volumes (P < 0.001, ANOVA) and delayed colonic transit times (P = 0.01, Kruskal-Wallis). The combined iRBD and PDRBD+ patient data were compatible with a body-first trajectory, characterized by initial loss of cardiac MIBG signal and 11C-colonic donepezil signal followed by loss of putaminal FDOPA uptake. In contrast, the PDRBD- data were compatible with a brain-first trajectory, characterized by primary loss of putaminal FDOPA uptake followed by a secondary loss of cardiac MIBG signal and 11C-donepezil signal. These findings support the existence of brain-first and body-first subtypes of Parkinson's disease.

[Recommendations on performing polygraphy or polysomnography in the fields of psychiatry and psychotherapy : Position paper of the working group on sleep medicine of the German Association for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics]. / Empfehlungen zur Durchführung einer Polygraphie oder Polysomnographie im Bereich Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie : Positionspapier des DGPPN-Referats Schlafmedizin.

Difficulties in falling asleep and maintaining sleep, nonrestorative sleep and decreased daytime wakefulness represent very common but relatively unspecific health complaints. Around 100 specific sleep-related disorders will be classified in their own major chap. 7 (sleep wake disorders) for the first time in the upcoming 11th version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD 11). With respect to the disciplines of psychiatry and psychotherapy there is a bidirectional relationship between mental health and sleep wake disorders. Sleep wake disorders can be an independent risk factor for the onset of a mental disorder and have a negative influence on the course of the disease. In addition, sleep wake disorders can also precede a mental disease as an early symptom and therefore be an important indication for early recognition. Many sleep wake disorders can be diagnosed based on the anamnesis and routine clinical investigations. In special cases, examination in a specialized sleep laboratory and treatment in a sleep medicine center following a staged care approach can be mandatory. Polysomnography represents the gold standard for the differential diagnostics; however, there is no legal foundation in the field of neuropsychiatric disorders for remuneration in the German healthcare system. This review summarizes the current guidelines with respect to the criteria for an investigation in a sleep laboratory from the perspective of the disciplines of psychiatry and psychotherapy. From this the requirements for guideline-conform diagnostics and treatment are derived.

Costs of inpatient care of depression in 2014 in Polish (Poznan) and German (Kiel) hospital.

Objectives: Depression is highly prevalent worldwide and generates significant economic burden. Despite this, there is still insufficient information on hospitalisation costs related to depression. Therefore, this paper presents a comparison of costs of inpatient care of depression among patients hospitalised in 2014 in Kiel (Germany) and in Poznan (Poland).Methods: The retrospective study was conducted from October 2015 to May 2017 in Kiel and in Poznan and concerned all patients (n = 548 and eventually included n = 444; 334 in Kiel and 110 in Poznan) hospitalised in these centres.Results: The annual cost of inpatient care of patients hospitalised due to depression in 2014 was EUR [Formula: see text] = EUR 9397.21 (total EUR 313,8667.2) in Kiel and EUR [Formula: see text] = EUR 2962.90 (total EUR 325,919.38) in Poznan. In Kiel, the most frequently prescribed medicine was mirtazapine while in Poznan it was venlafaxine.Conclusions: The 3-fold difference in average costs of hospitalisation might result from differences in funding of mental health care which in Poland needs urgent amendment. Besides, mental health care was underfunded in Poznan. In general, treatment was comprehensive in both centres. Non-pharmacological treatment, however, was more comprehensive in Kiel.KEY POINTSThe cost of inpatient care of depression was very high both in Kiel and Poznan.Inpatient care of depression is long-lasting, but a reduction in the length of hospital stay seems to be possible.Hospital stay is the main part of costs of inpatient care of depression.Treatment of depression should be comprehensive, but differences e.g. in pharmacotherapy used are possible between hospitals and/or countries.

[Sleep and cognition in children and adolescents]. / Schlaf und Kognition bei Kindern und Jugendlichen.

Sleep and cognition in children and adolescents Abstract. In this review, one of the most important functions of sleep was described: Its role in promoting cognitive processes in children and adolescents. Particularly, studies of older children and adolescents revealed that sleep interacts in a complex manner with cognitive performance. Moreover, it was shown that sleep supports long-term memory even in young children. This is true for many different long-term memory systems such as memory of factual information (declarative memory), language acquisition, and for reward-related learning, but less so for learning motor skills. Clinical implications arise from observing the consequences of sleep deficits in children and adolescents due to early school hours or due to clinical conditions like attention deficits hyperactive disorder (ADHD), sleep apnea syndrome or other sleep disturbances. Current research has only partially shown that the treatment of sleep problems also benefits cognitive and memory performance. Filling this gap remains an opportunity for further research.

Sleep recordings in individuals with borderline personality disorder before and after trauma therapy.

Most individuals diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) have been exposed to severe and traumatic stressors and thus frequently present with symptoms of a posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Severe sleep disturbances often accompany these complex cases, but changes of sleep parameters during therapy and the impact of sleep on treatment response have barely been studied. Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) is an evidence-based approach for the treatment of trauma-related psychological disorders. To investigate the effect of NET on sleep in patients with BPD and comorbid PTSD, we screened 45 inpatients and outpatients who met the inclusion criteria of both diagnoses according to DSM-IV and who had a minimum of 2 weeks' stable medication. Patients were allocated to NET (N = 13) or treatment as usual (TAU; N = 8) in blocks. Polysomnographies and psychological questionares were performed before, directly and 6 months after the last therapy session. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the effectiveness of trauma therapy by NET on sleep quantity (total sleep time) and sleep continuity (sleep efficiency and awakenings) in patients with comorbid BPD and PTSD. Participants of the NET group compared with those who received TAU showed an increased reduction in sleep latency from baseline to the end of therapy and a reduction in arousals over time. Patients with longer pre-treatment total sleep time and pre-treatment REM sleep duration showed a better outcome of NET with respect to PTSD symptoms. NET seems not lead to a change in sleep for the worse during therapy and seems to improve sleep as good as treatment as usual. Furthermore, our results provide evidence of an influence of sleep structure at baseline on treatment success later on.

The Cost of Inpatient Care of Schizophrenia and Treatment Schedules Used in German Academic Center: Kiel.

The authors aimed at analyzing the costs of inpatient care of schizophrenia in Kiel (Germany). The study was also to present treatment regimens used at the German Academic Center. Moreover, the study is a continuation and complement of the previous study conducted in Polish and Ukrainian Academic Center. Therefore, it helps increase the awareness and knowledge of residents concerning the cost of inpatient care of schizophrenia. The analysis was based on 105 hospital records of patients treated between January 2012 and June 2013. According to inclusion criteria, 50 adult patients (27 women and 23 men) were included in the study. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Medicine Faculty of CAU in Kiel. The cost of schizophrenia treatment of 50 patients in Kiel was EUR 604,280.90 ([Formula: see text] = EUR 12,085.62). The duration of hospital stay was on average [Formula: see text] = 51.02 days. The patients were treated with neuroleptics of all generations. The most popular atypical neuroleptic was amisulpride and the most popular typical neuroleptic was haloperidol. Patients from Kiel were provided a comprehensive non-pharmacological treatment. Treatment regiments and evaluations of costs of schizophrenia vary between countries. The costs of inpatient care of schizophrenia are high in Kiel. Treatment of schizophrenia seems to be comprehensive in Kiel and wide range of treatment opportunities contribute to a more effective treatment confirmed by less frequent relapses of schizophrenia than in Lviv (Ukraine), for example. Comprehensive treatment should be available everywhere, because it is a right of every patient.

The effect of selective REM-sleep deprivation on the consolidation and affective evaluation of emotional memories.

Emotion boosts the consolidation of events in the declarative memory system. Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is believed to foster the memory consolidation of emotional events. On the other hand, REM sleep is assumed to reduce the emotional tone of the memory. Here, we investigated the effect of selective REM-sleep deprivation, SWS deprivation, or wake on the affective evaluation and consolidation of emotional and neutral pictures. Prior to an 9-h retention interval, sixty-two healthy participants (23.5 ± 2.5 years, 32 female, 30 male) learned and rated their affect to 80 neutral and 80 emotionally negative pictures. Despite rigorous deprivation of REM sleep or SWS, the residual sleep fostered the consolidation of neutral and negative pictures. Furthermore, emotional arousal helped to memorize the pictures. The better consolidation of negative pictures compared to neutral ones was most pronounced in the SWS-deprived group where a normal amount of REM sleep was present. This emotional memory bias correlated with REM sleep only in the SWS-deprived group. Furthermore, emotional arousal to the pictures decreased over time, but neither sleep nor wake had any differential effect. Neither the comparison of the affective ratings (arousal, valence) during encoding and recognition, nor the affective ratings of the recognized targets and rejected distractors supported the hypothesis that REM sleep dampens the emotional reaction to remembered stimuli. The data suggest that REM sleep fosters the consolidation of emotional memories but has no effect on the affective evaluation of the remembered contents.

Schizophrenia and Employment: Evaluation From Professionals Point of View.

Schizophrenia is a severe and chronic disorder requiring long-lasting and comprehensive treatment. Because of this disorder patients are socially isolated. Consequently, schizophrenia has a significant economic burden both in a group of direct and indirect costs. The aim was to analyse experts' opinions in the field of psychiatry concerning work possibilities among people with schizophrenia and to present the importance of employment for more effective treatment. A worldwide study was conducted between June 2011 and June 2013 using a questionnaire consisting of six open-closed questions and a short metrics. The questionnaire was delivered to experts and spread all over the world by post and via the internet. Over 3000 questionnaires were sent and the addressed specialists were requested to return them. From received 403 questionnaires 320 were included into the study, based on adopted inclusion and exclusion criteria. Although patients are afraid of looking for a job, respondents indicated that they crave for employment. The number of people that are able to work during remission of schizophrenia is considerably higher (50.35 %) than the number of actually employed (15.85 %). Non-pharmacological therapies were indicated as important to improve patients' chances of finding a job during remission of schizophrenia. The number of people that can work during remission of schizophrenia is considerably higher than the number of affected people employed. Patients crave for a job and supported employment should be treated as priority by health-care decision makers.

Objectively assessed sleep quality parameters in Multiple Sclerosis at home: Association to disease, disease severity and physical activity.

BACKGROUND: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune, neurodegenerative disease that affects regular mobility and leads predominantly to physical disability. Poor sleep quality, commonly reported in MS patients, impacts their physical activity (PA). Accelerometers monitor 24-h activity patterns, offering insights into disease progression in daily life. OBJECTIVE: To test if the sleep quality variables of MS patients, as assessed with wrist-worn accelerometers, differ from those of controls and are associated with PA and disease severity variables. METHODS: Seven-day raw accelerometer data collected from 40 MS patients and 24 controls was processed using an open-source GGIR package, from which variables of sleep quality (sleep efficiency, wake after sleep onset (WASO), sleep regularity index (SRI), intradaily variability (IV)) and PA (of different intensities: inactivity, light (LPA), moderate (MPA), vigorous (VPA)) were analyzed. The variables were compared between the two study groups and in MS patients, correlation tested associations among the variables of sleep quality, PA, and disease severity (assessed with the Expanded Disability Status Scale, EDSS). RESULTS: Sleep efficiency was the only variable that differed significantly between MS patients and controls (lower in MS, p = 0.01). Both SRI (positively) and IV (negatively) correlated with the time spent in LPA and MPA. WASO correlated negatively with inactivity. CONCLUSION: This is one of the few studies with a wrist-worn accelerometer that shows a difference in sleep efficiency between MS patients and controls and, in MS, an association of sleep quality variables with PA variables.

Declarative memory performance is associated with the number of sleep spindles in elderly women.

OBJECTIVE: Recent evidence suggests that the sleep-dependent consolidation of declarative memory relies on the nonrapid eye movement rather than the rapid eye movement phase of sleep. In addition, it is known that aging is accompanied by changes in sleep and memory processes. Hence, the purpose of this study was to investigate the overnight consolidation of declarative memory in healthy elderly women. SETTING: Sleep laboratory of University. PARTICIPANTS: Nineteen healthy elderly women (age range: 61-74 years). MEASUREMENTS: We used laboratory-based measures of sleep. To test declarative memory, the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test was performed. RESULTS: Declarative memory performance in elderly women was associated with Stage 2 sleep spindle density. Women characterized by high memory performance exhibited significantly higher numbers of sleep spindles and higher spindle density compared with women with generally low memory performance. CONCLUSION: The data strongly support theories suggesting a link between sleep spindle activity and declarative memory consolidation.

Sleep and cognition at baseline and the effects of REM sleep diminution after 1 week of antidepressive treatment in patients with depression.

It has been hypothesized that non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep facilitates declarative memory consolidation, and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is particularly important in promoting procedural learning. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of pharmacological REM sleep suppression on performance in different neuropsychological tasks. For our baseline, we chose 41 moderately depressed patients (age range 19-44 years), who were not taking antidepressants. In the morning after polysomnography, we tested memory recall and cognitive flexibility by assessment of verbal and figural fluency, a shift of attention task and the Trail Making Test B. After recording baseline values, patients were assigned randomly to one of three treatment groups: medication with citalopram; medication with reboxetine; or exclusive treatment with psychotherapy. Retesting took place 1 week after onset of treatment. The main results were: (1) an association of slow-wave sleep with verbal memory performance at baseline; (2) a suppression of REM sleep in patients taking citalopram and reboxetine; (3) no differences regarding neuropsychological performance within the treatment groups; and (4) no association of REM sleep diminution with decreases in memory performance or cognitive flexibility in patients treated with citalopram or reboxetine. In line with other studies, our results suggest that there are no negative effects of a decrease in REM sleep on memory performance in patients taking antidepressants.

Self-control or social control - what determines sleep hygiene in bed-sharing couples?

OBJECTIVES: To investigate intimate partners' impact on sleep hygiene with focus on the temporal dimension and differential predictors of sleep hygiene in co-sleepers and individual sleepers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Habitual co-sleepers and individual sleepers (n=102) completed a cross-sectional, self-report, in-lab, digital survey on sleep hygiene, habitual sleeping arrangement, self-control, depressiveness, and sociodemographic parameters. RESULTS: The relationship between sleeping arrangement and sleep hygiene in co-sleepers was time-dependent with an initial steep incline and a subsequent plateau at approximately one year of co-sleeping routine. Co-sleepers with more than one year of unaltered sleeping arrangement had significantly better sleep hygiene than co-sleepers with less than one-year or individual sleepers. More than one-year continuity of the sleeping arrangement moreover robustly predicted sleep hygiene in co-sleepers whereas self-control was the dominant predictor in individual sleepers. CONCLUSION: Amongst others, our findings support the idea that insomnia treatment could be improved by becoming sensitive to the habitual sleeping arrangement.

Psychotic-like experiences in patients with insomnia or sleep apnea: associations with sleep parameters.

OBJECTIVES: There are strong links between sleep and psychotic-like experiences (PLE), such as magical ideations or persecutory ideas. Sleep disturbances seem to play an important role in the occurrence of such symptoms, but studies investigating PLE in patients with sleep disorders are lacking. METHODS: We studied 24 subjects with insomnia disorder (41 ± 13 years) and 47 participants with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA, 47 ± 11 years) in the sleep laboratory and 33 healthy controls. Sleep in patients with sleep disorders was recorded and scored according to standard criteria of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. PLE were measured by the Magical Ideation Scale (MIS, short form with 10 items) and by the Peters et al., Delusions Inventory (PDI, 21 items). Additionally, cognitive tests and further psychological self-rating tests such as the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were administered. RESULTS: Patients with insomnia had significantly higher scores of magical and delusional ideations compared to healthy controls. Sleep apnea patients showed a tendency of a higher score of delusional beliefs in comparison to controls. Magical ideations in insomnia subjects were significantly negatively correlated with the number of sleep spindles. In a subgroup of insomnia patients without antidepressants, delusional beliefs were negatively associated with rapid eye movement (REM)-sleep. CONCLUSIONS: As there are indications that diminutions of sleep spindles are a biomarker for dysfunctional thalamo-cortical circuits underlying the neuropathology of psychosis, we conclude that there might be a sub-group of insomnia patients with fewer sleep spindles which is more vulnerable to developing a psychotic disorder in the future.

REM density is associated with treatment response in major depression: Antidepressant pharmacotherapy vs. psychotherapy.

Major depression is one of the most common psychiatric illnesses. Interestingly, a few studies have indicated the existence of depression subgroups, which respond differently to the available treatment options. Previously, sleep abnormalities have been suggested to indicate amenability to different treatment regimens. Thereby, especially REM-sleep parameters seem to play a prominent role, and REM-sleep dysregulation has been repeatedly discussed as a potential endophenotype of depression. With that said, estimating therapy outcome in order to choose the best line of treatment is of utmost importance to patients suffering from depression. The present study looks deeper into these clues by investigating the capability of polysomnographic sleep parameters to predict treatment response in depressed patients to either pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy. Moderately to severely depressed patients (n = 38) were randomly assigned to either psychotherapy (i.e. interpersonal psychotherapy) or pharmacotherapy (i.e., monotherapy with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, SSRI, or selective serotonin noradrenalin reuptake inhibitors, SSNRI). Prior to treatment, all patients underwent polysomnography in the sleep laboratory. After treatment, responders and non-responders of both treatment groups were compared regarding their baseline sleep parameters. Higher baseline REM density, i.e. the amount of rapid eye movements during REM sleep, predicted better response to antidepressant pharmacotherapy. In the psychotherapy group, the effect seemed reversed but was not statistically significant. No other sleep parameter predicted treatment response. Our findings support the notion that REM-sleep dysregulation is indeed indicative of a distinct endophenotype of depression and that pharmacotherapy with SSRI/SSNRI might be superior to psychotherapy in these patients.

Non-pharmacological treatments of inpatients with major depression - The case of Polish (Poznan) and German (Kiel) hospital.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Although the treatment of depression should be comprehensive, there is insufficient information about non-pharmacological interventions used during hospitalization. Hence, the aim was to compare non-pharmacological interventions used in psychiatry clinics in Kiel (Germany) and Poznan (Poland). METHODS AND MATERIALS: The retrospective study covered all patients hospitalized in 2016 (F32 or F33). Out of 545 patients hospitalized in 2016 in both centers, the analysis concerns 322 records from Kiel and 168 from Poznan. RESULTS: Non-pharmacological treatments were used in both centers. However, in Kiel there were more therapeutic options. Contrary to Poznan, patients in Kiel used therapies like "Kneippen", Qigong, and light therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing Tai Chi in Kiel would be interesting to develop the scope of used interventions. Investment in non-pharmacological treatment should be a priority for healthcare decision-makers in Poland. The wide range of non-pharmacological interventions should be commonly accessible to provide the most comprehensive treatment.

Acoustic closed-loop stimulation during sleep improves consolidation of reward-related memory information in healthy children but not in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Slow oscillations (SO) during slow-wave sleep foster the consolidation of declarative memory. Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) display deficits in the sleep-associated consolidation of declarative memory, possibly due to an altered function of SO. The present study aimed at enhancing SO activity using closed-looped acoustic stimulation during slow-wave sleep in children with ADHD. METHODS: A total of 29 male children (14 with ADHD; aged 8-12 years) participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study trial. Children spent two experimental nights in a sleep lab, one stimulation night and one sham night. A declarative learning task (word-pair learning) with a reward condition was used as a primary outcome. Secondary outcome variables were a procedural memory (serial reaction time) and working memory (WM; n-back) task. Encoding of declarative and procedural memory took place in the evening before sleep. After sleep, the retrieval took place followed by the n-back task. RESULTS: The stimulation successfully induced SO activity during sleep in children with and without ADHD. After stimulation, only healthy children performed better on high-rewarded memory items (primary outcome). In contrast, there were indications that only children with ADHD benefitted from the stimulation with respect to procedural as well as WM performance (secondary outcome). CONCLUSIONS: We were able to show that the acoustic closed-loop stimulation can be applied to enhance SO activity in children with and without ADHD. Our data indicate that SO activity during sleep interacts with subsequent memory performance (primary outcome: rewarded declarative memory; secondary outcome: procedural and WM) in children with and without ADHD.

Bed-Sharing in Couples Is Associated With Increased and Stabilized REM Sleep and Sleep-Stage Synchronization.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Sharing the bed with a partner is common among adults and impacts sleep quality with potential implications for mental health. However, hitherto findings are contradictory and particularly polysomnographic data on co-sleeping couples are extremely rare. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of a bed partner's presence on individual and dyadic sleep neurophysiology. METHODS: Young healthy heterosexual couples underwent sleep-lab-based polysomnography of two sleeping arrangements: individual sleep and co-sleep. Individual and dyadic sleep parameters (i.e., synchronization of sleep stages) were collected. The latter were assessed using cross-recurrence quantification analysis. Additionally, subjective sleep quality, relationship characteristics, and chronotype were monitored. Data were analyzed comparing co-sleep vs. individual sleep. Interaction effects of the sleeping arrangement with gender, chronotype, or relationship characteristics were moreover tested. RESULTS: As compared to sleeping individually, co-sleeping was associated with about 10% more REM sleep, less fragmented REM sleep (p = 0.008), longer undisturbed REM fragments (p = 0.0006), and more limb movements (p = 0.007). None of the other sleep stages was significantly altered. Social support interacted with sleeping arrangement in a way that individuals with suboptimal social support showed the biggest impact of the sleeping arrangement on REM sleep. Sleep architectures were more synchronized between partners during co-sleep (p = 0.005) even if wake phases were excluded (p = 0.022). Moreover, sleep architectures are significantly coupled across a lag of ± 5min. Depth of relationship represented an additional significant main effect regarding synchronization, reflecting a positive association between the two. Neither REM sleep nor synchronization was influenced by gender, chronotype, or other relationship characteristics. CONCLUSION: Depending on the sleeping arrangement, couple's sleep architecture and synchronization show alterations that are modified by relationship characteristics. We discuss that these alterations could be part of a self-enhancing feedback loop of REM sleep and sociality and a mechanism through which sociality prevents mental illness.