This Research Scientist Award is designed to provide the PI with an opportunity to continue his work in sleep disorders and sleep pharmacology on a full time basis. The organizing theme of this proposal is to examine issues which are salient to the understanding of insomnia, but about which there is minimal information. Thus the PI will test the hypothesis that an abnormal relationship between physiologic measures and the subjective perception of sleep and the mechanism of action of hypnotic medications. As the natural history of insomnia is poorly understood, the PI will continue a long-term follow-up study of patients and the follow-up phase of a cross-sectional study of the complaint of poor sleep in a working population. In order to explore the issue of how hypnotics induce sleep, the PI will examine the effects of benzodiazepines on the functioning of the medial preoptic area and the dorsal raphe nuclei, as well as the role of GABA and possible alterations in voltage-dependent calcium channel functioning. Insofar as any pharmacologic therapy may be subject to abuse, the PI will examine the' use of benzodiazepine receptor antagonists and inverse agonists as treatment for toxicity from hypnotic compounds including barbiturates. Finally, insofar as clinical work in sleep disorders leads inevitably to an involvement in sleep apnea syndromes, the PI will also examine a similar series of issues involving sleep-disordered breathing. Studies will include long-term follow-up and assessment of the interactions of hypertension, sleepiness and depression. It is anticipated that the award would facilitate this work by providing the PI with time to work with collaborators, further enhancing his skill in pharmacology and epidemiology.
| Mendelson, W B; Thompson, C; Franko, T (1996) Adverse reactions to sedative/hypnotics: three years' experience. Sleep 19:702-6 |
| Mendelson, W B (1996) Are periodic leg movements associated with clinical sleep disturbance? Sleep 19:219-23 |
| Mendelson, W B (1996) Sleep induction by microinjection of pentobarbital into the medial preoptic area in rats. Life Sci 59:1821-8 |
| Mendelson, W B (1996) The use of sedative/hypnotic medication and its correlation with falling down in the hospital. Sleep 19:698-701 |
| Mendelson, W B; Jain, B (1995) An assessment of short-acting hypnotics. Drug Saf 13:257-70 |
| Mendelson, W B (1995) The relationship of sleepiness and blood pressure to respiratory variables in obstructive sleep apnea. Chest 108:966-72 |
| Mendelson, W B (1995) Long-term follow-up of chronic insomnia. Sleep 18:698-701 |
