Comorbid insomnia and sleep apnoea (COMISA)

CPD
By
Dr Alexander Sweetman, Associate Professor Sutapa Mukherjee and Professor Garun Hamilton
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Case scenario

Carmen, 54 years old, presents to the pharmacy reporting sleep difficulties.
She reports poor sleep quality and daytime exhaustion that started about 6 months ago.

A national education program for pharmacists funded by the Australian Government under the Quality Use of Diagnostics, Therapeutics and Pathology program.

She has no history of medicine use for sleep but would like information on the different medicines that are available. You ask Carmen about the specific sleep symptoms that she is experiencing, including her sleep patterns and symptoms of sleep disorders. She is not on any regular medicines.

References 

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Our authors

Dr Alexander Sweetman (he/him) PhD

Senior Program Manager, and chair of the psychologist education subcommittee at the Australasian Sleep Association.

Associate Professor Sutapa Mukherjee (she/her) MBBS, FRACP, PhD

Respiratory and sleep physician, Associate Professor of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at Flinders University and past President of the Australasian Sleep Association.

Professor Garun Hamilton (he/him) MBBS, FRACP, PhD

Respiratory and sleep physician, clinical professor at Monash Health and Monash University and President of the Australasian Sleep Association.

Our reviewer

QUALITY USE OF MEDICINES FOR INSOMNIA AND SLEEP HEALTH (QUMISH) STEERING COMMITTEE

Conflicts of interest declarations

Dr Sweetman reports research equipment and/or funding support from the National Health and Medical Research Council, Medical Research Future Fund, Flinders University, the Flinders Foundation, the Hospital Research Foundation, Big Health, Philips Respironics, Compumedics, ResMed­­, and commissioned/consultancy work for Australian Doctor, Sleep Review Mag, Re-Time Australia, the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Orofacial Pain, and Cerebra.

Professor Hamilton reports receiving equipment to use for research studies from ResMed and Air Liquide Healthcare. He has received speaker fees from Somnomed.