Somnology
Pharmacological treatments are used to chemically treat sleep disturbances such as insomnia or excessive daytime sleepiness. The kinds of drugs used to treat sleep disorders include: anticonvulsants, anti-narcoleptics, anti-Parkinsonian drugs, benzodiazepines, non-benzodiazepine hypnotics, and opiates as well as the hormone melatonin and melatonin receptor stimulators. Anticonvulsants, opiates, and anti-Parkinsonian drugs are often used to treat restless legs syndrome. Furthermore, melatonin, benzodiazepines hypnotics, and non-benzodiazepine hypnotics may be used to treat insomnia. Finally, anti-narcoleptics help treat narcolepsy and excessive daytime sleepiness.
Clinical neurochemistry
Dyssomnia is a class of sleep disorders which includes Primary insomnia, primary hypersomnia, narcolepsy, breathing-related sleep disorders, circadian rhythm sleep discorer, and other conditions. Primary insomnia is a disorder in which a patient has difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep. Behavior modification and a reduction in neurologically active substances such as caffeine and alcohol seem to be among the most promising treatments. Although the mechanism is unknown, brain plasticity and behavior modification are utilized to train patients to only go to bed when tired, associating the bed itself with a sleepy state.