Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia in a Community Health Setting

Insomnia, though quite common in the general population, is especially prevalent among individuals with co-occurring mental illnesses, patients whose condition can be further exacerbated by insomnia and vice versa. For individuals taking one or more psychotropic medications, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), the gold standard in insomnia treatment, is a particularly favorable option (vis-à-vis pharmacotherapy). However, CBT-I can be inaccessible for persons with low socioeconomic status, a group that includes many with psychiatric diagnoses. Computer-based delivery of CBT-I (cb-CBT-I) has the potential to be a cost-effective tool that could greatly improve accessibility for this at-risk demographic.

Thirty-four participants with insomnia who were currently engaged in mental health care treatment were randomized to an active control group (sleep diary group; n = 16) or cb-CBT-I (n = 18) during weekly outpatient sessions over the course of 6 w. All participants completed sleep and activity logs at each appointment, whereas those in the cb-CBT-I group also completed one session of the cb-CBT-I program each week.

cb-CBT-I treatment was associated with lower scores (improved sleep) on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Post hoc tests demonstrated a between groups difference at week 6 (p = 0.02), with a statistically significant decrease in PSQI scores in the cb-CBT-I group (p = 0.0006) but not in the sleep diary group (p = 0.35).

cb-CBT-I improves sleep in individuals with insomnia and co-occurring mental illness. The significant improvements on the PSQI suggest that implementing a cb-CBT-I treatment in a community mental health center would be a simple and effective treatment for improving sleep over a short period of time.

A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 161.