Practice parameters for the evaluation of chronic insomnia. An American Academy of Sleep Medicine report. Standards of Practice Committee of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Chronic insomnia is the most common sleep complaint which health care practitioners must confront. Most insomnia patients are not, however, seen by sleep physicians but rather by a variety of primary care physicians. There is little agreement concerning methods for effective assessment and subsequent differential diagnosis of this pervasive problem. The most common basis for diagnosis and subsequent treatment has been the practitioner's clinical impression from an unstructured interview. No systematic, evidence-based guidelines for diagnosis exist for chronic insomnia. This practice parameter paper presents recommendations for the evaluation of chronic insomnia based on the evidence in the accompanying review paper. We recommend use of these parameters by the sleep community, but even more importantly, hope the large number of primary care physicians providing this care can benefit from their use. Conclusions reached in these practice parameters include the following recommendations for the evaluation of chronic insomnia. Since the complaint of insomnia is so widespread and since patients may overlook the impact of poor sleep quality on daily functioning, the health care practitioner should screen for a history of sleep difficulty. This evaluation should include a sleep history focused on common sleep disorders to identify primary and secondary insomnias. Polysomnography, and the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) should not be routinely used to screen or diagnose patients with insomnia complaints. However, the complaint of insomnia does not preclude the appropriate use of these tests for diagnosis of specific sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea, periodic limb movement disorder, and narcolepsy that may be present in patients with insomnia. There is insufficient evidence to suggest whether portable sleep studies, actigraphy, or other alternative assessment measures including static charge beds are effective in the evaluation of insomnia complaints. Instruments such as sleep logs, self-administered questionnaires, symptom checklist, or psychological screening tests may be of benefit to discriminate insomnia patients from normals, but these instruments have not been shown to differentiate subtypes of insomnia complaints.

Practice parameters for the treatment of restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder. An American Academy of Sleep Medicine Report. Standards of Practice Committee of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

These are the first clinical guidelines published for the treatment of Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD) providing evidence-based practice parameters. They were developed by the Standards of Practice Committee and reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The guidelines provide recommendations for the practice of sleep medicine in North America regarding the treatment of RLS and PLMD. Recommendations are based on the accompanying comprehensive review of the medical literature regarding treatment of RLS and PLMD which was developed by a task force commissioned by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Recommendations are identified as standards, guidelines, or options, based on the strength of evidence from published studies that meet criteria for inclusion. Dopaminergic agents are the best studied and most successful agents for treatment of RLS and PLMD. Specific recommendations are also given for the use of opioid, benzodiazepine, anticonvulsant, and adrenergic medications, and for iron supplementation. In general, pharmacological treatment should be limited to individuals who meet diagnostic criteria and especially who experience insomnia and/or excessive sleepiness that is thought to occur secondary to RLS or PLMD. Individuals treated with medication should be followed by a physician and monitored for clinical response and adverse effects. It would be desirable for future investigations to employ multicenter clinical trials, with expanded numbers of subjects using double-blind, placebo-controlled designs, and an assessment of long-term response, side effects, and impact of treatment on quality of life. Evaluation of special groups such as children, pregnant women, and the elderly is warranted.

Practice parameters for the nonpharmacologic treatment of chronic insomnia. An American Academy of Sleep Medicine report. Standards of Practice Committee of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Insomnia is the most common sleep complaint reported to physicians. Treatment has traditionally involved medication. Behavioral approaches have been available for decades, but lack of physician awareness and training, difficulty in obtaining reimbursements, and questions about efficacy have limited their use. These practice parameters review the current evidence with regards to a variety of nonpharmacologic treatments for insomnia. Using a companion paper which provides a background review, the available literature was analyzed. The evidence was graded by previously reported criteria of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine with references to American Psychological Association criteria. Treatments considered include: stimulus control, progressive muscle relaxation, paradoxical intention, biofeedback, sleep restriction, multicomponent cognitive behavioral therapy, sleep hygiene education, imagery training, and cognitive therapy. Improved experimental design has significantly advanced the process of evaluation of nonpharmacologic treatments for insomnia using guidelines outlined by the American Psychological Association (APA). Recommendations for individual therapies using the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommendation levels for each are: Stimulus Control (Standard); Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Paradoxical Intention, and Biofeedback (Guidelines); Sleep Restriction, and Multicomponent Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Options); Sleep Hygiene Education, Imagery Training, and Cognitive Therapy had insufficient evidence to be recommended as a single therapy. Optimal duration of therapy, who should perform the treatments, long term outcomes and safety concerns, and the effect of treatment on quality of life are questions in need of future research.

Deep branch ulnar neuropathy due to giant cell tumor: report of a case.

Electrophysiologic studies indicated a lesion of the deep branch of the ulnar nerve in the palm of a 42-year-old man with painless weakness and wasting of ulnar-innervated intrinsic hand muscles. Magnetic resonance imaging of this region demonstrated a soft-tissue mass in the palm distal to Guyon's canal. Surgical exploration disclosed a giant cell tumor of the tendon sheath, compressing the deep branch of the ulnar nerve.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia. Therapy results and prognostic factors.

From December 1976 to July 1986, 34 patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) were treated with daunorubicin (DNR) alone and simultaneous supportive therapy with low-dose heparin, platelet transfusions, and fresh frozen plasma. Two consecutive maintenance therapy regimens were employed in patients who achieved complete remission (CR): (1) a classical maintenance with methotrexate and 6-mercaptopurine, with DNR plus methyl-GAG re-inductions; (2) from 1982 an intensive sequential combination therapy regimen was administered. CR was achieved in 23 patients (68%). Only one patient had leukemic resistance. Other failures were a consequence of post-chemotherapy complications. A multivariate logistic regression analysis has been performed to evaluate the prognostic importance on response to remission induction of 25 patient and disease characteristics at diagnosis. The significant variables in decreasing order of significance were: serum albumin level, fever at diagnosis, serum creatinine level, and age. The median duration of remission and survival by Kaplan-Meier analysis were projected to be 24 and 25 months, respectively. Relapses occurred in 11 of 23 CR patients. Nine patients remained in the first remission from 5+ to 37+ months. Short-term (CR) and long-term results (duration of remission and survival) in APL treated for induction with DNR alone were similar to those obtained in other subtypes of acute myeloblastic leukemia by intensive combination chemotherapy.