Sleep disorders and schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental illness that impacts a persons thinking and behavior. It's hard to treat and there is no cure. Sleep problems are common. This article discusses that point - in particular insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and sleep-related movement disorders. This is what I see in my practice when patients with schizophrenia are referred to me. OSA is common due to obesity, and obesity can be worsened by the medications used to treat schizophrenia. Also, movement disorders when asleep can be more common due to the medications used for schizophrenia.

Sleep and Headaches

Although I did not go this year, I saw that the American Headache Society Annual Scientific meeting recently occurred. I received an update from Medscape about the importance of screening for sleep disorders in chronic headache sufferers. This goes along with my clinical experience treating patients with sleep disorders.

There is an association between sleep and headaches, but it's not been entirely worked out. Headaches can disrupt sleep, and sleep disorders can worsen headaches. A common referral I get is waking up with headaches, which sometimes can be from a sleep-related breathing disorder like obstructive sleep apnea. Migraine headache patients seem especially vulnerable to disorders that break up sleep.

Most headache physicians know the importance of adequate sleep in treating patients with chronic headaches. Hopefully, the recent Headache meeting will remind headache specialists to consider sleep disorders as they attempt to manage their headache patients.