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Slow-wave sleep predicts long-term social functioning in severe mental illness
Henning Johannes Drews1, Christian Dirk Wiesner2, Christina Bethke-Jaenicke1
1Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Christian-Albrechts-University Kiel, Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
Plos One
|August 30, 2018
Summary
Slow-wave sleep (SWS) duration is a key predictor of long-term social functioning in psychiatric disorders, independent of diagnosis. This finding highlights sleep
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Sleep Medicine
Background:
- Social functioning deficits are common in severe mental illness.
- The long-term impact of sleep on social outcomes in psychiatric disorders is understudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between polysomnographic sleep characteristics and long-term social functioning in patients with severe mental illness.
- To identify predictors of social functioning in schizophrenia and major depression.
Main Methods:
- Polysomnography was used to assess sleep characteristics in 31 patients (15 schizophrenia, 16 major depression) 6 years prior to follow-up.
- Social functioning, cognitive performance, and clinical characteristics were assessed at follow-up.
- Multiple regression and bootstrapped mediation analyses were employed.
Main Results:
- Slow-wave sleep (SWS) duration and number of hospitalizations significantly predicted social functioning, accounting for 50% of the variance.
- SWS remained a significant predictor even after controlling for baseline functioning and diagnosis.
- The effect of SWS on social functioning was not mediated by hospitalizations.
Conclusions:
- Duration of slow-wave sleep is a powerful predictor of long-term social outcome in psychiatric disorders.
- Sleep disturbances may represent a therapeutic target for improving social functioning in these populations.
- Future research should explore prospective designs and interventions targeting sleep.
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