A digital therapy reduced insomnia more than a sleep-habits guide
The advantage over the guide lasted through 24 weeks in 336 U.S. adults with confirmed insomnia.
The key idea
A digital therapy program reduced insomnia symptoms more than sleep-habit information, and the advantage lasted six months.
The study, in plain language
People seeking help for insomnia may find different formats. This trial tested an automated digital cognitive behavioral therapy program (SleepioRx) against educational material about sleep habits in U.S. adults with confirmed insomnia, randomly assigned to one or the other.
With the program, insomnia symptoms fell more, and more people met the study’s definitions for response or remission. The symptom advantage lasted through 24 weeks. Sleep diaries showed reduced wake time after falling asleep, but the difference in time to fall asleep was not firm after adjustment for multiple comparisons. Participants were recruited through social media, and follow-up ended at six months. Big Health, the maker of SleepioRx, funded the study, and several authors reported employment or financial ties to the company.
What they found
- The automated program was compared with online educational information about sleep habits.
- Symptoms fell more with the program, and the advantage continued at follow-up through 24 weeks.
- Wake time after falling asleep decreased. The difference in time to fall asleep was not firm.
Something to think about
If insomnia stays with you, what is hardest: falling asleep or staying asleep? Here, the program improved wake time during the night, but the time to fall asleep did not clearly change.
How they studied it
336 U.S. adults with confirmed insomnia were randomized to the digital program or online education about sleep habits. Assessments continued through 24 weeks.
What the study cannot show
- Recruitment through social media may not represent the full clinical population; follow-up ended at 24 weeks; dropout was somewhat higher for SleepioRx, although analyses were robust to plausible assumptions about missing data. The sample was diverse, but its racial composition did not exactly match the national population.
- It does not show that SleepioRx is equivalent to therapist-guided CBT-I, that effects last beyond six months, or that digital therapy replaces clinical care for complex cases. The control also received educational material, and usual care could continue.
The original study
The Effectiveness of Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to Treat Insomnia Disorder in US Adults: Nationwide Decentralized Randomized Controlled Trial
Source under CC BY 4.0. English adaptation and explanation by PaperFlow, with AI assistance. The text has been reorganized for a general audience; it is not the complete paper and does not imply endorsement by its authors.
One study alone does not represent a field's consensus. Educational content does not replace professional advice. Report a possible error.
