Posttraumatic sleep disturbances in veterans: A pilot randomized controlled trial of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and imagery rehearsal therapy.

Objectives: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with sleep disturbances including insomnia and nightmares. This study compared cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) with CBT-I combined with imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT) for nightmares to evaluate if the combined treatment led to greater reductions in trauma-related sleep disturbances in Australian veterans.

Methods: Veterans with diagnosed PTSD, high insomnia symptom severity, and nightmares (N = 31) were randomized to eight group CBT-I sessions or eight group CBT-I + IRT sessions.

Comparison of Sleep Patterns in Vietnam Veterans With and Without Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Using Wrist Actigraphy.

Study Objectives: Disturbed sleep is a hallmark feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, few studies have examined sleep objectively in individuals with PTSD compared to trauma-exposed controls. This study used wrist actigraphy to measure and compare sleep patterns in trauma-exposed Australian Vietnam veterans (VV) with and without PTSD.