Novel Treatment of Comorbid Insomnia and Sleep Apnea in Older Veterans

Sleep disturbance is common in older adults and is associated with increased healthcare utilization, more depressive symptoms, and other adverse effects on health-related quality of life. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a disorder characterized by repetitive episodes of complete or partial upper airway obstruction occurring during sleep. OSA increases in prevalence with age, and is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, decreased quality of life, and increased mortality. Insomnia also increases in prevalence with age, and is associated with numerous adverse outcomes, including cognitive decline, decreased quality of life, increased healthcare costs and increased mortality. The diagnostic criteria for insomnia include a decreased ability to fall asleep or stay asleep, frequent nighttime awakening or poor quality sleep that is associated with daytime impairment such as fatigue, impaired attention, or daytime sleepiness. Increasing evidence suggests that insomnia often coexists with OSA, particularly in older adults, and predicts worse outcomes of OSA. Both OSA and insomnia have a higher prevalence among Veterans, compared to the general population.

Little is known of the best approaches to manage the large number of patients with coexisting OSA and comorbid insomnia. Guidelines for best practice typically address these conditions separately, where positive airway pressure (PAP) is the standard for the treatment of OSA, and cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is considered first-line treatment for chronic insomnia. CBT-I is particularly recommended for insomnia in older adults, where adverse effects of sleeping medications are most problematic. Early adherence to PAP therapy (i.e., within the first week of PAP therapy) is one of the strongest predictors of long-term PAP adherence. However, adherence rates to PAP therapy in patients with OSA are low. In addition, CBT-I has not been widely implemented for treatment of insomnia (in part due to limited access to mental health specialists able to provide CBT-I), untreated OSA limits response to treatment of insomnia, and untreated insomnia negatively impacts PAP adherence.

Based on this evidence and findings from the investigators' prior work, the investigators believe that an integrated, behavioral treatment approach which addresses both OSA and insomnia early in the course of PAP therapy is needed to maximize patient adherence and treatment success when these conditions coexist. The investigators propose a randomized controlled trial to test a novel, behavioral approach integrating best practices for management of both conditions among older Veterans with OSA who are prescribed PAP therapy and have comorbid insomnia. The purpose of this project is to determine whether this intervention improves nighttime sleep and PAP adherence.