title: Is chronic insomnia a precursor to major depression? Epidemiological and biological findings.
abstract: Insomnia has been found to be a clinical predictor of subsequent depression. Nevertheless the biological processes underlying this causal relationship are yet not fully understood. Both conditions share a common imbalance of the arousal system. Patients with insomnia present fragmented REM sleep, which probably interferes with basal processes of emotion regulation. The interaction between the arousal and the affective system with the persistence of the disorder could slowly alter also the cognitive system and lead to depression. Although preliminary results seem to support this hypothesis, data are still too few to make valid conclusions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg Medical Center, Hauptstraße 5, 79104 Freiburg, Germany. chiara.baglioni@uniklinik-freiburg.de
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Baglioni
authors.forename: Dieter
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Riemann
mesh_terms: D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007319:Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000502:physiology