Sleep Drugs and Women: A Review of Issues to Consider for Optimizing the Care of Women With Sleep Disorders
Andrew Krystal and Hrayr Attarian
Certain sleep medications, such as zolpidem, exhibit sex-specific pharmacological profiles, so it imperative to understand their unique pharmacokinetic properties to optimize women’s health. The slower clearance of these medications and higher serum concentrations after dosing in women are independent of weight and have to do with the impact of estrogen on the liver enzymes involved in the metabolism of these medications.
In this peer-reviewed article, members of SWHR’s Sleep Network summarize and discuss the data on the sex-specific dosing of zolpidem, for which FDA recommends women take half the dose that is recommended for men. They also discuss the reasons behind the interaction of hormonal birth control and the drug modafinil/armodafinil and rate of contraceptive failure when hormonal birth control is used with this wake-promoting agent.
Sleep Medications and Women: a Review of Issues to Consider for Optimizing the Care of Women with Sleep Disorders was published in October 2016 in Current Sleep Medicine Reports.
Certain sleep medications, such as zolpidem, exhibit sex-specific pharmacological profiles, so it imperative to understand their unique pharmacokinetic properties to optimize women’s health. The slower clearance of these medications and higher serum concentrations after dosing in women are independent of weight and have to do with the impact of estrogen on the liver enzymes involved in the metabolism of these medications.
In this peer-reviewed article, members of SWHR’s Sleep Network summarize and discuss the data on the sex-specific dosing of zolpidem, for which FDA recommends women take half the dose that is recommended for men. They also discuss the reasons behind the interaction of hormonal birth control and the drug modafinil/armodafinil and rate of contraceptive failure when hormonal birth control is used with this wake-promoting agent.
Sleep Medications and Women: a Review of Issues to Consider for Optimizing the Care of Women with Sleep Disorders was published in October 2016 in Current Sleep Medicine Reports.