Psycho-Babble Medication | about biological treatments | Framed
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Re: sleep hitting (Scott)

Posted by Scott L. Schofield on April 23, 2000, at 13:01:27

In reply to Re: sleep hitting (Scott), posted by BinaryWoman on April 23, 2000, at 10:51:39

> Were tricyclic antidepressants ever discussed?
>
> - Scott
> No, my dad has Parkinsons so he had meds for that. Maybe there would be an interaction. The docs at the sleep clinic were trying to suppress REM sleep.
>
> BW

That's one of the reasons tricyclics came to mind. They do suppress REM sleep. I don't know if there are any contraindications to their use in Parkinson's or with the use of the drugs typically chosen to treat it. I imagine Eldepryl (selegiline, l-deprenyl) has already been considered for the Parkinson's. It is usually used in combination with other antiparkinson drugs. Eldepryl significantly and dose-dependantly suppresses REM. Perhaps raising the dosage would be helpful.

If PTSD or depression (often associated with Parkinson's) is playing a role in what's going on with your father's sleep, using an antidepressants would probably be a good idea. Eldepryl seems to have demonstrated some efficacy as an antidepressant, but I don't see that it has been used successfully for PTSD. SSRIs are probably attracting more attention for treating PTSD, but certainly tricyclics have been commonly used successfully in the past. Both SSRIs and tricyclics are prescribed for depression associated with Parkinson's. SSRIs are probably chosen first because of their "favorable" side effect profile, but may occasionally exacerbate Parkinsonian symptoms. My gut tells me that tricyclics are probably more effective for PTSD, especially with regard to sleep-architecture. Just a guess. It may be important to choose a tricyclic that has minimal anticholinergic effects, so as to avoid cognitive disturbances and possible interactions with those anticholinergic drugs sometimes used to treat Parkinson's.

I don't know. But these may be things to ask the doctor about.

I still like the "socker-bopper" idea. (Look for archived T.V. commercials of the 1960's)


- Scott


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