Sleep and circadian schedule disorders.
The timing and synchronization of human circadian rhythms is important for health and well-being. Some individuals, for reasons that remain unclear, display less resilience or flexibility in their ability to synchronize to the 24-hour world and are thus diagnosed with a circadian schedule disorder. The objective of this article is to briefly introduce concepts about human circadian timing and to review what is known about chronic, long-term circadian schedule disorders such as delayed sleep phase syndrome, advanced sleep phase syndrome, irregular sleep-wake patterns, and non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder. Practical considerations for the clinician caring for these individuals are discussed.
Labyak
Susan
S
Department of Family and Child Nursing, School of Nursing, Box 357262, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-7262, USA. slabyak@u.washington.edu
D019454:Chronotherapy; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology; D020178:Sleep Disorders, Circadian Rhythm / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy