Insomnia and Cognitive Performance

Janeese A Brownlow; Katherine E Miller; Philip R Gehrman

doi:10.1016/j.jsmc.2019.10.002

Insomnia and Cognitive Performance

Sleep Med Clin. 2020 Mar;15(1):71-76. doi: 10.1016/j.jsmc.2019.10.002. Epub 2019 Nov 27.

Authors

Janeese A Brownlow¹, Katherine E Miller², Philip R Gehrman³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, College of Health & Behavioral Sciences, Delaware State University, 1200 North DuPont Highway, Dover, DE 19901, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Suite 670, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Electronic address: jbrownlow@desu.edu.
² Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 3900 Woodland Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
³ Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Suite 670, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 3900 Woodland Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.

Abstract

Insomnia is the most common sleep problem, affecting between 30% and 50% in the general adult population. Insomnia is characterized by difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep, along with dissatisfaction with sleep quality or quantity. Insomnia complaints are linked to clinically significant distress or impairment in key areas of functioning, especially daytime cognitive performance. Cognitive impairments related to insomnia are subtle, and may represent distinct differences from those seen in other sleep disorders. This article updates and summarizes the recent literature investigating cognitive impairments in individuals with insomnia, and identifies the cognitive domains of functioning that are consistently impaired.

Keywords: Attention; Concentration; Executive function; Insomnia; Memory.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Cognition / physiology*
Cognitive Dysfunction / psychology*
Humans
Neuropsychological Tests
Sleep / physiology*
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders / psychology*

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

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