title: Rasagiline for sleep disorders in patients with Parkinson's disease: a prospective observational study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Rasagiline is a selective, irreversible monoamine oxidase B inhibitor that ameliorates the symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) by inhibiting striatal dopamine metabolism. There is also evidence that monoamine oxidase B inhibitors increase melatonin levels in the pineal gland and may have a beneficial effect on sleep disorders, which are a common feature in patients with PD.
  
  
  METHODS
  This single-center, prospective, observational, 12-week study compared the effect of combination therapy with levodopa 200-300 mg/d + rasagiline 1 mg/d (n=19) with levodopa 200-300 mg/d alone (n=19) in the treatment of sleep disorders in patients with idiopathic PD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After 12 weeks' treatment, mean sleep latency was significantly (P<0.001) lower and the improvement in sleep latency from baseline was significantly (P=0.001) greater in patients receiving levodopa + rasagiline than in patients receiving levodopa alone. Similarly, at the end of the study, the mean total sleep time was significantly (P=0.002) longer and the improvement from baseline in mean total sleep time was significantly (P=0.026) greater in patients receiving levodopa + rasagiline than levodopa alone. There were no significant differences between treatment groups for the mean number of awakenings reported at week 12 nor the change from baseline to week 12 in mean number of awakenings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adding rasagiline to levodopa improved sleep outcomes and may be an appropriate option for patients with PD experiencing sleep disorders.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schettino
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Clemente
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dato
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Guglielmo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Capaldo
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sampaolo
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Di Iorio
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical, Surgical, Neurological, Metabolic Sciences, and Aging; Division of Neurology and InterUniversity Center for Research in Neurosciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Mariarosa Ab
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Melone
keywords: Parkinson’s disease; Parkinson’s disease sleep scale; rasagiline; sleep disorders