Episode 167: New AASM Guidance on Combination Treatment for Chronic Insomnia

Episode 166 of the NeurologyLive^® Mind Moments^® podcast is now live! Scroll down to listen or click here to subscribe on your favorite streaming service.

The Mind Moments podcast features exclusive interviews with leaders in the field discussing the latest research and disease management strategies across the breadth of neurology, including epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson disease, dementia, sleep disorders, and more.

In this Mind Moments episode, Todd Arnedt, PhD, professor of psychiatry and neurology at Michigan Medicine-University of Michigan, joins the podcast to discuss the recently published American Academy of Sleep Medicine clinical practice guideline on combination treatment for chronic insomnia disorder in adults. Arnedt explains the rationale behind formal recommendations for concurrent use of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and pharmacotherapy, particularly as combination treatment becomes increasingly common in clinical practice. 

The conversation reviews the evidence supporting CBT-I as the preferred foundational treatment approach, where combination therapy may offer advantages over pharmacotherapy alone, and how clinicians should think about factors such as symptom burden, treatment goals, access to CBT-I, and patient preference when selecting treatment strategies. Arnedt also outlines ongoing research gaps involving sequential treatment approaches, medication classes, long-term outcomes, and personalized insomnia care.

The stories featured in this week’s Neurology News Minute, which will give you quick updates on the following developments in neurology, are further detailed here:

• Topline Phase 2 CELIA Results Show Diranersen Misses Primary End Point in Early Alzheimer Disease
• FDA Grants Priority Review to Bayer’s Asundexian for Secondary Stroke Prevention
• Dyne Submits BLA for Z-Rostudirsen in Exon 51 Skipping Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

EPISODE BREAKDOWN

• 1:15 – Why formal insomnia combination treatment guidance was needed
• 2:45 – Defining concurrent CBT-I and pharmacotherapy approaches
• 4:35 – Evidence supporting CBT-I as foundational insomnia treatment
• 7:15 – Situations where combination therapy may improve patient outcomes
• 7:50 – Neurology News Network 
• 10:20 – Patient-specific factors influencing insomnia treatment selection
• 12:30 – Barriers involving CBT-I access, cost, and real-world implementation
• 16:55 – Research gaps surrounding sequencing, long-term outcomes, and personalization

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