title: Sleep deprivation in mood disorders.
abstract: Growing clinical evidence in support of the efficacy and safety of sleep deprivation (SD), and its biological mechanisms of action suggest that this technique can now be included among the first-line antidepressant treatment strategies for mood disorders. SD targets the broadly defined depressive syndrome, and can be administered according to several different treatment schedules: total versus partial, single versus repeated, alone or combined with antidepressant drugs, mood stabilizers, or other chronotherapeutic techniques, such as light therapy and sleep phase advance. The present review focuses on clinical evidence about the place of SD in therapy, its indications, dosage and timing of the therapeutic wake, interactions with other treatments, precautions and contraindications, adverse reactions, mechanism of action, and comparative efficacy, with the aim of providing the clinical psychiatrist with an updated, concise guide to its application.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute and University Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy. benedetti.francesco@hsr.it
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Benedetti
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Colombo
mesh_terms: D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy*; D013000:Psychiatric Somatic Therapies / Q000379:methods*; D012892:Sleep Deprivation / Q000378:metabolism / Q000523:psychology*
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents