Abstract

TAFOYA RAMOS, Silvia Aracely  and  LARA MUNOZ, María del Carmen. Non-pharmacological Interventions in Primary Insomnia: Controlled Clinical Trial Findings (1998-2008). rev.colomb.psiquiatr. [online]. 2011, vol.40, n.2, pp.310-335. ISSN 0034-7450.

Introduction: Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder and it affects approximately 10% of the world's population causing a negative impact on sufferers' emotional, physical, and social wellbeing. Several non−pharmacological treatments have been developed that appear to be effective. Objective: To analyze the main findings on primary insomnia. Methodology: During February 2009, a systematic review was undertaken using the Cochrane Database of Controlled Clinical Trials. A selection was made of articles written in English, Portuguese, and Spanish published between 1998 and 2008. The key words used were: primary insomnia, management, treatment and non−pharmacological. An analysis was carried out on 37 articles. Results: In general, all interventions had positive effects on the quality of sleep. With most of the combined techniques, the improvements were moderate−to−high and they were maintained through follow-up. According to the evidence gathered, the best non−pharmacological treatment was Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) although other intervention options such as Light Exposure produced encouraging results. The non−pharmacological approach gave better long−term results than pharmacological treatments. Conclusions: There is evidence of the benefits of non−pharmacological interventions for primary insomnia. Further research is necessary to evaluate the dose−response ratio and the cost−effectiveness of treatments.

Keywords : Primary; review; non-pharmacological intervention.

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