While mannitol injection is the mainstay for  treating high pressure in the skull after a bad brain injury, it is no better than hypertonic saline as a first-line treatment. In treatment-resistant cases, hypertonic saline works better. Intra-arterial infusions of mannitol can transiently open the blood-brain barrier by disrupting tight junctions.It may also be used for certain cases of kidney failure with low urine output, decreasing pressure in the eye, to increase the elimination of certain toxins, and to treat fluid build up.Intraoperative mannitol prior to vessel clamp release during renal transplant has been shown to reduce post-transplant kidney injury, but has not been shown to reduce graft rejection.Mannitol acts as an osmotic laxative in oral doses larger than 20 g, and is sometimes sold as a laxative for children.The use of mannitol, when inhaled, as a bronchial irritant as an alternative method of diagnosis of exercise-induced asthma has been proposed. A 2013 systematic review concluded evidence to support its use for this purpose at this time is insufficient.Mannitol is commonly used in the circuit prime of a heart lung machine during cardiopulmonary bypass. The presence of mannitol preserves renal function during the times of low blood flow and pressure, while the patient is on bypass. The solution prevents the swelling of endothelial cells in the kidney, which may have otherwise reduced blood flow to this area and resulted in cell damage.
These changes could be used to detect those most at risk of developing AD. However, this is still only theoretical. While the exact mechanisms and the causal relationship between sleep disturbances and AD remains unclear, these findings already provide a better understanding and offer possibilities to improve targeting of at-risk populations—and the implementation of treatments to curb the cognitive decline of AD patients. Sleep disorder symptoms in psychiatric illnesses
Schizophrenia
In individuals with psychiatric illnesses sleep disorders may include a variety of clinical symptoms, including but not limited to: excessive daytime sleepiness, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep, nightmares, sleep talking, sleepwalking, and poor sleep quality. Sleep disturbances - insomnia, hypersomnia and delayed sleep-phase disorder - are quite prevalent in severe mental illnesses such as psychotic disorders. In those with schizophrenia, sleep disorders contribute to cognitive deficits in learning and memory. Sleep disturbances often occur before the onset of psychosis. Sleep deprivation can also produce hallucinations, delusions and depression. A 2019 study investigated the three above-mentioned sleep disturbances in schizophrenia-spectrum (SCZ) and bipolar (BP) disorders in 617 SCZ individuals, 440 BP individuals, and 173 healthy controls (HC). Sleep disturbances were identified using the Inventory for Depressive Symptoms - clinician rated scale (IDS-C). Results suggested that at least one type of sleep disturbance was reported in 78% of the SCZ population, in 69% individuals with BD, and in 39% of healthy controls.