Insomnia drug lemborexant reduces the gap between perceived and actual sleep

A recent Japanese study has found that a 12-week course of the insomnia drug lemborexant improved both objective and subjective sleep measurements while simultaneously reducing the gap between perceived and actual sleep. This medication works by blocking orexin receptors, which in turn reduces the brain's wake-promoting signals.

The research, published in Psychopharmacology, involved middle-aged and older individuals with insomnia, with an average age of 58.5 years. Participants received either 5mg or 10mg of lemborexant, with the option to increase the dose if the initial dose was ineffective. The study, which involved a small sample size, observed that lemborexant treatment led to an improvement in objective and subjective sleep parameters at the 12-week mark.

Furthermore, it was noticed that participants who experienced a greater reduction in daytime sleepiness also saw a significant decrease in the discrepancy between their subjective and objective total sleep time. However, this discrepancy reduction was not linked to an improvement in subjective sleep quality. The study's authors suggest that the results indicate a potential association between lemborexant treatment and reduced sleep-wake state discrepancy, leading to improved daytime functioning in individuals with insomnia.

However, due to the small sample size and the absence of a control group, it remains unclear whether the observed effects are directly caused by lemborexant or if they represent natural developments or other factors influencing the sleep quality indicators over time.