Insomnia Prevention Program Beneficial for At-Risk Adolescents

FRIDAY, Oct. 20, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Adolescents at risk for insomnia can benefit from an insomnia prevention program, according to a study published online Oct. 6 in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

Si-Jing Chen, Ph.D., from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and colleagues examined the differential response to insomnia prevention in subgroups of at-risk adolescents. Adolescents with a family history of insomnia and subthreshold insomnia symptoms were randomly allocated to a four-week insomnia prevention program or nonactive control.

Three subgroups were identified by latent class analysis: insomnia symptoms only, insomnia symptoms with daytime sleepiness and mild anxiety, and insomnia symptoms with daytime sleepiness, mild anxiety, and depression. The researchers found that during the 12-month follow-up, the incidence rate of insomnia disorder was significantly reduced for adolescents receiving intervention versus control among those with symptoms with daytime sleepiness, mild anxiety, and depression, and marginally, but not significantly, reduced for those with insomnia symptoms with daytime sleepiness and mild anxiety. For those with insomnia symptoms with daytime sleepiness and mild anxiety and for those with insomnia symptoms with daytime sleepiness, mild anxiety, and depression, a reduced risk for excessive daytime sleepiness and possible anxiety was seen with intervention versus control during the 12-month follow-up.

"A brief cognitive behavioral insomnia prevention program is effective in preventing insomnia disorder with additional benefits in reducing the risk of excessive daytime sleepiness and anxiety, especially for those with daytime impairments and mood symptoms," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text