Melatonin in Sleep Disorders and Jet-lag

CARDINALI DP; BRUSCO LI; PÉREZ LLORET S; FURIO A

Neuroendocrinology Letters

Año: 2002 vol. 23 p. 9 - 13

In elderly insomniacs, melatonin treatment decreased sleep latency and increased sleep efficiency. This is particularly marked in Alzheimer´s disease (AD) patients. Melatonin is effective to reduce significantly benzodiazepine use. In addition, melatonin administration synchronizes the sleep-wake cycle in blind people and in individuals suffering from delayed sleep phase syndrome or jet lag. Urinary levels of 6-sulphatoxymelatonin decrease with age and in chronic diseases like AD or coronary heart disease. The effect of melatonin on sleep is probably the consequence of increasing sleep propensity (by inducing a fall in body temperature) and of a synchronizing effect on the circadian clock (chronobiotic effect).