Study Information

Project Summary  

What is the research about?

Insomnia is a sleep disorder that can make it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep. People can take medicines to treat insomnia, but they can cause dependence or side effects, such as daytime fatigue or memory problems. To avoid these problems, some people choose to treat insomnia with behavioral therapy. But people who live in rural areas may not have access to these services.

In this study, the research team is comparing three ways to treat insomnia among people living in rural areas:

• Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, or internet CBT-I. This approach helps people learn healthy sleep habits and change behaviors that make insomnia worse. Internet CBT-I also teaches people how to deal with thoughts that keep them awake.
• Medicine for insomnia. People receiving medicine are prescribed zolpidem or trazodone based on their preference. Doctors guide decisions about the medicine, such as how much to take and when to stop taking it.
• Internet CBT-I plus medicine.

Who can this research help?

Results may help doctors and patients when considering ways to treat insomnia.

What is the research team doing?

The research team is enrolling 1,200 people with insomnia from rural clinics across the United States. The team is assigning people by chance to receive internet CBT-I, medicine, or both. The internet CBT-I program lasts six weeks.

The research team is measuring people’s insomnia symptoms at the start of the study and again 9 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months later. After the program ends, the team is comparing symptoms of insomnia across the three groups. The team is also looking to see if the three groups differ in other sleep or health outcomes such as quality of life and mood. Finally, the team is looking to see if the treatments work differently based on factors such as age or gender.

People with insomnia, primary care doctors, and health insurers are helping to plan and conduct this study.

Research methods at a glance