Notice: Users may be experiencing issues with displaying some pages on stanfordhealthcare.org. We are working closely with our technical teams to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience.
 

Learn about the flu shot, COVID-19 vaccine, and our masking policy »

Stanford Health Care

Beliefs about prescription sleep medications and interest in reducing hypnotic use: an examination of middle-aged and older adults with insomnia disorder. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine Tully, I. A., Kim, J. P., Simpson, N., Palaniappan, L., Tutek, J., Gumport, N. B., Dietch, J. R., Manber, R. 2023

Abstract

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To examine beliefs about prescription sleep medications (hypnotics) among individuals with insomnia disorder seeking cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) and predictors of wishing to reduce use.METHODS: Baseline data was collected from 245 adults 50 years and older enrolled in the "RCT of the effectiveness of stepped-care sleep therapy in general practice (RESTING)" study. T-tests compared characteristics of prescription sleep medication users with those of non-users. Linear regression assessed predictors of patients' beliefs about sleep medication necessity and hypnotic-related concerns. Among users, we examined predictors of wishing to reduce sleep medications, including perceived hypnotic dependence, beliefs about medications, and demographic characteristics.RESULTS: Users endorsed stronger beliefs about the necessity of sleep medications and less concern about potential harms than non-users (p < .01). Stronger dysfunctional sleep-related cognitions predicted greater beliefs about necessity and concern about use (p < .01). Patients wishing to reduce sleep medications reported greater perceived hypnotic dependence than those disinterested in reduction (p < .001). Self-reported dependence severity was the strongest predictor of wishing to reduce use (p = .002).CONCLUSIONS: Despite expressing strong beliefs about necessity, and comparatively less concern about taking sleep medications, three-quarters of users wished to reduce prescription hypnotics. Results may not generalize to individuals with insomnia not seeking non-pharmacological treatments. Upon completion, the RESTING study will provide information about the extent to which therapist-led and digital CBTI contribute to prescription hypnotic reduction.CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRY: Registry: ClinicalTrials.gov; Name: The RESTING Insomnia Study: Randomized Controlled Study on Effectiveness of Stepped-Care Sleep Therapy (RESTING); URL: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03532282; Identifier: NCT03532282.

View details for DOI 10.5664/jcsm.10552

View details for PubMedID 36883379