Diagnosis, Prevalence, Pathways, Consequences & Treatment of Insomnia (Report‪)‬

Insomnia is a sleep disorder that may occur acutely and dissipate or may become a vexing chronic disorder. Although difficulty in initiating and/or maintaining sleep is a fairly straightforward complaint, a thorough assessment of the presenting insomnia is well worth the upfront effort before formulating and delivering a specific intervention strategy. The pathophysiology of insomnia can actually be somewhat complex (or at least multi-factorial) because of the many inputs to the sleep-wake system in general and the additional specific behaviours and cognitions which an individual layers on top of the physiologic substrates. Chronic insomnia has a surprising number of individual and societal consequences, which far exceed being a nuisance. In fact, there is considerable morbidity associated with chronic insomnia and even a degree of mortality. Fortunately, there are a number of safe and effective treatments for insomnia. Definition & diagnosis of insomnia