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Insufficient and disturbed sleep are common among patients with psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, who report much higher rates of sleep problems than are found in the general population.1 Typical self-reported and objectively measured sleep disturbances among patients with psychotic disorders include difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep, reduced total sleep time, and poorer sleep quality. Sleep problems are often reported before the first psychotic episode as well as before the commencement of psychotropic medications, including antipsychotics. Although many questions remain, strong correlative evidence indicates that insufficient and disturbed sleep is associated with more severe psychotic symptoms and cognitive dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Moreover, there are striking similarities between the behavioral, brain, and peripheral effects of sleep deprivation in healthy individuals and features of schizophrenia spectrum disorders.2 This substantial body of evidence suggests that sleep problems may be intrinsic to the illness and/or may exacerbate psychosis. Despite these findings, it remains unclear whether sleep problems common among patients with psychotic disorders constitute diagnoses of sleep disorders. Understanding the prevalence of specific sleep disorders and their consequences is of vital importance because sleep disorders could be treatment targets among patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

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