The Sleep Factor

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Sleep deprivation is associated with age-related comorbidities, and is additionally a risk factor for a multitude of diseases (Krueger & Friedman, 2009). Management of sleep disorders is therefore critical not only for restorative sleep, but also for the improvement and maintenance of overall mental and physical health. Neurocircuitry models can assist healthcare practitioners in better understanding their patients’ symptoms and making better therapeutic decisions. Furthermore, alterations in brain pathways that regulate sleep may elicit perturbations in peripheral biomarkers such as urinary neurotransmitters and salivary melatonin. Accordingly, the measurement of peripheral biomarkers may help guide and monitor therapeutic interventions to maximize the therapeutic success of pharmacological and non-pharmacological sleep aids (Kotzailias et al., 2004; Kusaga et al., 2002; Mooney et al., 1988; Reynolds, III et al., 2006).