Subjective assessment of the effects of CNS-active drugs on sleep by the Leeds sleep evaluation questionnaire: a review

Abstract

The Leeds sleep evaluation questionnaire (LSEQ) comprises ten self-rating 100 mm line analogue questions concerned with sleep and early morning behaviour. A literature search identified 83 studies in peer-reviewed journals that reported the use of the LSEQ for psychopharmacological investigations of drug effects on self-reported aspects of sleep. High internal consistency and reliability of the questionnaire have been demonstrated. Findings from studies involving a variety of psychoactive agents indicated that the LSEQ was able to quantify subjective impressions of sleep and waking and the effects of drugs in healthy volunteers, depressed and insomnia patients. In accordance with their known activity profile nocturnal administration of sedative hypnotic agents and antihistamines induced dose-related improvements in self-reported ease of getting to sleep, and quality of sleep but a decrease in alertness and behavioural integrity the following morning. Psychostimulants, on the other hand, impaired subjective ratings of sleep and increased early morning alertness. Antidepressants and certain anxiolytic agents improved both self-reported sleep aspects and early morning alertness. Treatment effects measured by the LSEQ corresponded to those measured for the same drugs by other assessment methods. These data indicate that the LSEQ is a robust and reliable instrument for psychopharmacological evaluations. Self-evaluations of sleep, as obtained by the LSEQ, can therefore provide consistent and meaningful measures for estimating the effectiveness of sleep modulators and sedative-hypnotic drugs.