High sleep reactivity: clinical, psychological and polysomnographic features

Background. The model of sleep reactivity to stress considers sleep reactivity to stress as a link in the pathogenesis of insomnia disorder – the degree to which stress disturbs sleep, which manifests as difficulty in initiating and maintaining sleep. The aim . To study clinical and psychological features as well as subjective and objective sleep indexes of subjects with high level of sleep reactivity to stress. Materials and methods . The psychological status, subjective indexes of sleep and sleep reactivity to stress according to Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test were studied among 18–75 year-old subjects without significant sleep disturbances and patients with chronic insomnia. Polysomnography was performed for objective evaluation of sleep parameters. Results . It was found that individuals with high levels of sleep reactivity to stress were characterized by high levels of anxiety, restlessness, and neuroticism. According to results of Pittsburg questionnaire, a lower quality of sleep was revealed. These findings were correlated with objective indexes of sleep according to polysomnographic studies: less deep sleep and its lower efficiency due to sleep disturbances. Conclusions . Individuals with high sleep reactivity to stress are characterized by greater anxiety combined with subjective and objective sleep disturbance like insomnia type.