Shift-Work Disorder: Treatment Caffeine is frequently used to promote wakefulness. However, it cannot forestall sleep indefinitely, and it does not shield users from sleep-related performance lapses. Postural changes, exercise, and strategic placement of nap opportunities can sometimes temporarily reduce the risk of fatigue-related performance lapses. Properly timed exposure to bright light can facilitate rapid adaptation to night-shift work. While many techniques (., light treatment) used to facilitate adaptation to night shift work may help patients with this disorder, modafinil is the only therapeutic intervention that has ever been evaluated as a treatment for this specific patient population. Modafinil (200 mg, taken. | Chapter 028. Sleep Disorders Part 14 Shift-Work Disorder Treatment Caffeine is frequently used to promote wakefulness. However it cannot forestall sleep indefinitely and it does not shield users from sleep-related performance lapses. Postural changes exercise and strategic placement of nap opportunities can sometimes temporarily reduce the risk of fatigue-related performance lapses. Properly timed exposure to bright light can facilitate rapid adaptation to night-shift work. While many techniques . light treatment used to facilitate adaptation to night shift work may help patients with this disorder modafinil is the only therapeutic intervention that has ever been evaluated as a treatment for this specific patient population. Modafinil 200 mg taken 30-60 min before the start of each night shift is approved by the . Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for the excessive sleepiness during night work in patients with SWD. Although treatment with modafinil significantly increases sleep latency and reduces the risk of lapses of attention during night work SWD patients remain excessively sleepy at night even while being treated with modafinil. Safety programs should promote education about sleep and increase awareness of the hazards associated with night work. The goal should be to minimize both sleep deprivation and circadian disruption. Work schedules should be designed to minimize 1 exposure to night work 2 the frequency of shift rotation so that shifts do not rotate more than once every 2-3 weeks 3 the number of consecutive night shifts and 4 the duration of night shifts. Shift durations of 16 h should be universally recognized as increasing the risk of sleep-related errors and performance lapses to a level that is unacceptable in nonemergency circumstances. Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder Delayed sleep phase disorder is characterized by 1 reported sleep onset and wake times intractably later than desired 2 actual sleep times at nearly the same clock hours .
