Journal of Sleep Disorders & Therapy
Open Access
ISSN: 2167-0277
+44 1478 350008
ISSN: 2167-0277
+44 1478 350008
Gosselin D, Campbell K, Grenier J and De Koninck J
Background: Cognitive impairments are often reported by individuals with insomnia. Yet, objective performancebased measures of cognitive functioning have yielded inconsistent results. The present study aims to investigate sustained attention and vigilance in individuals with insomnia by employing a novel task based on the Schroger and Wolff paradigm. This innovative auditory distraction task measures two different cognitive processes: 1) the ability to sustain attention in order to detect the duration of auditory stimuli, 2) the ability to detect auditory stimulus change, which requires a switch of attention. A standard psychomotor vigilance test (PVT) was also employed for comparison purposes.
Methods: Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia was delivered to 5 participants. Performance on the psychomotor vigilance test and the novel auditory distraction task were examined prior to and following treatment.
Results: Accuracy of detection in the psychomotor vigilance test significantly improved following treatment. Similarly, the novel distraction task led to a significant improvement of accuracy of detection of auditory stimulus duration following treatment. However, processes related to the switching of attention upon presentation of auditory stimulus change were not altered following treatment.
Conclusion: Insomnia seems to affect sustained attention and vigilance. Such processes do appear to be responsive to therapy, unlike the ability to switch attention when relevant. The novel auditory distraction task examined in this study seems to be a promising clinical outcome measure of sustained attention and vigilance for insomnia, as it was observed to have the benefit of being devoid of a ceiling effect, which was found with the psychomotor vigilance test. Further investigation of this novel application warranted.