Laboratory sleep correlates of nightmare complaint in PTSD inpatients.
BACKGROUND
Nightmares are rare in the sleep laboratory, even in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder for whom nightmare complaints are diagnostic. Nevertheless, it is possible that laboratory conditions do not preclude the observation of telltales-nightmare-related modifications of tonic sleep-given sufficiently large samples.


METHODS
Sixty-three unmedicated, nonapneic Vietnam combat veterans undergoing inpatient treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder underwent polysomnographic testing and assessment of nightmare complaint.


RESULTS
Trauma-related nightmare complaint, but not non-trauma-related complaint, was associated with increased wake-after-sleep-onset in the sleep laboratory. No relationships between nightmare complaint and rapid eye movement sleep architecture were observed.


CONCLUSIONS
Increased wake-after-sleep-onset was specifically associated with trauma-related nightmare complaint, confirming data from other quarters suggesting they are both phenomenologically and functionally distinct from normal dreaming.
Woodward
S H
SH
National Center for PTSD, Clinical Laboratory and Education Division, Veterans Administration Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Arsenault
N J
NJ
Murray
C
C
Bliwise
D L
DL
D000328:Adult; D003130:Combat Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D004325:Dreams; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D008950:MMPI; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D014744:Vietnam; D014857:Warfare