Till Örebro universitet

INTRODUCTION: Transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth experience more stressors and are therefore at a higher risk of health problems compared with their cisgender peers. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of TGD youth in a general population sample and to explore a wide variety of health-related factors. We investigate differences in stressors and health outcomes between TGD youth and cisgender girls and boys and the influence of stressors and demographic factors on health outcome in the whole group.

METHODS: Cross-sectional survey data from a Swedish school-based study were used (N = 3,067, M = 17.8 years). Those who had reported their gender identity as "other" or other than their assigned gender (N = 41) were compared with cisgendered girls (n = 1,544) and boys (n = 1,482). Regression models in the whole group explored if demographics and stressors statistically predicted health outcomes.

RESULTS: In comparison with cisgender girls and boys, TGD youth (1.3% of the whole sample) reported a higher prevalence of self-harm and pain problems. Both TGD youth and cisgender girls more frequently reported insomnia, social anxiety, depressive symptoms, pain, and stressors compared with cisgender boys. When only demographic variables were entered, but not when stressors were added to the model, being TGD magnified the odds of depressive symptoms, sub-diagnostic social anxiety, and pain problems. Stressors magnified the odds of reporting health problems for the whole group.

CONCLUSION: TGD youth generally reported more stressors, which negatively influence health outcomes. Results are important for professionals who meet TGD youth.

OBJECTIVES: The use of social media during bedtime has increased in the past years among adolescents, contributing to disturbed sleep quality, which could potentially be related to emotional problems. This study aimed to analyze the mediation effects of sleep parameters on the relationship between NightTime Texting (NTT) on social media and adolescent sadness.

METHODS: We used a cross-sectional study and evaluated a total of 1464 Swedish students aged 15-17 (55.7% girls) to examine their frequency of NTT on social media, sleep parameters, and adolescent sadness. Bivariate and mediation analyses were performed.

RESULTS: Approximately 60% (n = 882) of adolescents engaged in nighttime instant messaging, with 37% (n = 330) reporting texting every night. Higher frequency of NTT was significantly associated with later bedtimes (η2 > 0.12), extended weekend wake-up times (η2 = 0.07), increased social jetlag (η2 = 0.07), and reduced sleep duration on schooldays (η2 = 0.10). Multicategorical parallel mediation analyses revealed that sleep duration on schooldays had an indirect effect on the relationship between both Occasional NTT (a11b1 = 0.05, p < .05) and Daily NTT (a21b1 = 0.12, p < .05) with sadness. Mediation effects were not moderated by gender (p > .05), however, the association between Occasional NTT and higher sadness was significantly linked to boys (t = 2.72; p = .007).

CONCLUSIONS: Findings showed a large percentage of adolescents engaging in nighttime social media use with worse quality of sleep, and underlined sleep duration on schooldays as a mediator associated with emotional problems in adolescents. These insights can aid in developing strategies for healthier habits to address the misuse of social media and prevent related health problems.

INTRODUCTION: Paradoxical intention (PI) is an insomnia treatment developed in the 1970s, which instructs patients to gently attempt to remain awake while in bed at night with the lights off. Previous research indicates PI's potential in improving insomnia, although no study has been conducted in the last few decades during which the insomnia diagnostic criteria have changed. Additionally, there are knowledge gaps regarding outcomes related to wake after sleep onset, the treatment mechanisms as well as the acceptability and feasibility of the treatment. This study therefore aims to address these gaps by assessing the potential mechanisms, preliminary efficacy, and patient experience and acceptability of PI.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We aim to include 40 adult participants with insomnia, aged 18 and above, from the Swedish general population. In this uncontrolled pilot study using a mixed-methods approach, both qualitative and quantitative data will be collected. The trial will be conducted on a self-help online platform, accessible from participants' homes, with weekly phone call support by therapists. Process and outcome measures will be assessed weekly across a 4-week intervention period and at a 3-month follow-up. A subset of participants will be asked to participate in qualitative semistructured interviews regarding the treatment.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval for this project has been granted by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (Dnr: 2023-06594-01). All participants will sign informed consent forms on a web service application prior to enrolment. From this mixed-methods study, we anticipate insights into the preliminary efficacy and mechanisms of paradoxical intention for treating insomnia, enriched by patient experience data. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications. The findings will inform adaptations to the treatment protocol and serve as groundwork for a possible larger scale randomised controlled trial.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT06259682.

Stimulus control (SC) is commonly viewed as an evidence-based treatment for insomnia, but it has not been evaluated comprehensively with modern review and meta-analytic techniques. The aim of the current study was thus to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of trials that examine the efficacy of stimulus control for insomnia. A systematic search for eligible articles and dissertations was conducted in six online bibliographic databases. The 11 included studies, with the majority published between 1978 and 1998, were randomised controlled and experimental studies in adults, comparing stimulus control for insomnia with passive and active comparators and assessing insomnia symptoms as outcomes. A random effects model was used to determine the standardised mean difference Hedge's g at post-treatment and follow-up for three sleep diary measures: the number of awakenings, sleep onset latency, and total sleep time. A test for heterogeneity was conducted, forest plots were produced, the risk of publication bias was estimated, and the study quality was assessed. In the trials identified, stimulus control resulted in small to large improvements on sleep onset latency and total sleep time, relative to passive comparators (g = 0.38-0.85). Compared with active comparators, the improvements following stimulus control were negligible (g = 0.06-0.30). Although methodological uncertainties were observed in the included trials, stimulus control appears to be an efficacious treatment for insomnia when compared with passive comparators and with similar effects to active comparators. More robust studies are, however, warranted before stronger conclusions are possible to infer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate individual effects of a three-week sleep robot intervention in adults with ADHD and insomnia, and to explore participants' experiences with the intervention.

METHODS: A proof-of-concept study with a mixed-methods design (n = 6, female = 4) where a repeated ABA single-case study was combined with interviews. Data were collected with the Consensus Sleep Diary, wrist actigraphy, questionnaires on symptoms of insomnia, arousal, emotional distress, and ADHD, and through individual interviews.

RESULTS: Visual analysis of the sleep diary and actigraphy variables did not support any effects from the robot intervention. Half of participants reported clinically relevant reductions on the Insomnia Severity Index from pre- to post-intervention. No changes regarding ADHD or arousal. Thematic analysis of the interviews resulted in three themes: (1) A pleasant companion, (2) Too much/not enough, and (3) A new routine.

CONCLUSION: Adjustments of the intervention ought to be made to match the needs of patients with both ADHD and insomnia before the next trial is conducted.

Objective: Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is the first-line treatment for insomnia, but half of the patients do not reach remission. This study aimed to explore subjective remission by investigating the characteristics of patients who reported lingering sleep problems after CBT-I.

Methods: Secondary analyses of a randomized controlled trial of group CBT-I in 72 primary care patients with insomnia disorder. Sociodemographic characteristics and outcomes (insomnia severity, sleep variables, hypnotics use, fatigue, depressive symptoms, and dysfunctional beliefs/attitudes), including baseline data and symptom change, were investigated in relation to patients' posttreatment response to the yes-or-no question “Would you say that you have sleep problems?”

Results: A total of 56.9% of patients reported sleep problems after CBT-I. At baseline, they had worse depressive symptoms (14.9 (SD 7.5) vs. 10.2 (SD 5.9), p = 0.006) and more awakenings (2.6 (SD 1.5) vs. 1.8 (SD 1.3), p = 0.034) than those in subjective remission from sleep problems. Patients in the non-remission and remission groups showed similar improvements in sleep, fatigue, and depressive symptoms, but patients in the non-remission group had improved less in insomnia severity, dysfunctional beliefs/attitudes about sleep, and hypnotic use. In patients with more pronounced depressive symptoms before CBT-I, change in depressive symptoms during treatment partially explained subjective remission from sleep problems.

Discussion: More severe depressive symptoms prior to CBT-I and less improvements in depressive symptoms during treatment predicted remaining subjective sleep problems after treatment. These findings highlight the importance of assessing depressive symptoms in primary care patients with insomnia, as patients with pronounced depressive symptoms may need tailored treatment.

Objectives: The aim of the studywas to compare the effects of a brief body scan with relaxation as an active control group to better understand their respective contributions to the reduction of sleep problems and anxiety symptoms among adolescent athletes.

Method: Two hundred and six adolescent athletes were recruited during the school year 2016/2017 and randomized into four arms: 4 weeks body scan, 8 weeks body scan, 4 weeks relaxation, and 8 weeks relaxation. Sleep problems and anxiety were measured at baseline and 4, 8, and 16 weeks after baseline. Time trends in sleep problems and anxiety were estimated using linear repeated measures models and compared between the four groups.

Results: Overall, there were beneficial time changes for sleep problems and anxiety symptoms in all four intervention groups, but significantly so only for anxiety symptoms. Specifically, the reduction of anxiety symptoms varied between - 11% per month for 8 weeks body scan, - 12% per month for 8 weeks relaxation, - 13% per month for 4 weeks relaxation, and - 16% per month for 4 weeks body scan. However, the time trends did not differ by intervention type or duration.

Conclusions: Both types of interventions had beneficial effects on anxiety independent of length of intervention, suggesting that a brief body scan as well as a brief relaxation could be part of a daily recovery practice for adolescent athletes.

Preregistration: This study was not preregistered.