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Poor sleep may affect function, mood in menopausal women
ORLANDO, Fla. — Menopause-induced insomnia is one of the most common complaints among women going through the menopausal transition, according to experts who presented at the North American Menopause Society 23rd Annual Meeting. Preliminary study data suggest reduced sleep or slow-wave activity during sleep could play a role in daytime function and mood.
“Several factors have been associated with sleep disturbances, including hot flashes, where there is a very strong correlation between experiencing hot flashes and reporting poor sleep. Also, an association exists between depression and anxiety symptoms and reporting poor sleep quality during this time. There are also results, particularly coming from the SWAN study, showing that changes in estradiol and follicle-stimulating hormone are also related to reports of poorer sleep quality,” Fiona C. Baker, PhD, of the Human Sleep Research Program and Neuroscience Program at SRI International in Menlo Park, Calif., and the Brain Function Research Group, School of Physiology, at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, said during a presentation.
Baker and colleagues examined 10 perimenopausal women (mean age, 48.6 years) who met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) criteria for sleep disorder due to menopause and a control group of 10 women without sleep complaints (mean age, 49.5 years). According to Baker, 65% of the women were in the early stages of menopause transition.
The patients took part in an adaptation/clinical screening night to confirm the absence of breathing-related sleep disorders or periodic limb movement disorder. In addition, the patients returned to undergo one night of polysomnographic recordings and an assessment of their physiological hot flashes.
According to data, there were no differences between the two groups in polysomnographic measures (menopausal insomniacs: 86.9%; controls: 90.3%). However, menopausal insomniac women spent less time in bed and experienced a shorter sleep duration (365.8 minutes) compared with controls (421 minutes; P<.05).
Moreover, subtle differences were noted in sleep microstructure by quantitative electroencephalography analyses, according to Baker. The menopausal insomniacs had less slow-wave activity (SWA; 0.3-4 Hz) during the first three non-rapid eye movement sleep periods compared with controls (P<.05). Yet, there were no differences in the rate of decline in SWA throughout the sleep cycles, Baker said.
Further data indicate that menopausal insomniacs measured higher scores on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, suggesting poorer sleep quality compared with controls. This group also experienced more depressed mood and anxiety (P<.05), higher levels of cogitative pre-sleep arousal (P<.05), a poorer quality of life (P<.05) and more dysfunctional beliefs about their sleep (P<.05) compared with controls, Baker said.
“Other researchers have shown that reduced SWA certainly impacts subjective assessments of sleep. It impacts daytime performance, memory and also daytime sleepiness. Despite it being a subtle affect, it can have large consequences,” Baker said. – by Samantha Costa
For more information:
Baker FC. S-7. Presented at: the North American Menopause Society 23rd Annual Meeting; Oct. 3-6, 2012; Orlando, Fla.
Disclosure: Baker reports no relevant financial disclosures.