Over the past 50 years, well over 100 twin studies have focussed on understanding factors contributing to variability in normal sleep-wake characteristics and sleep disturbances. Whilst we have gained a great deal from these studies, there is still much to be learnt. Twin studies can be used in multiple ways to answer questions beyond simply estimating heritability. This paper provides a compre...

The age of Ubiquitous Computing is approaching fast: most people in the UK over the age of 8 carry mobile phones [5], which are becoming increasingly sophisticated interactive computing devices. Location-based services are also increasing in popularity and sophistication [6]. There are many tracking and monitoring devices being developed that have a range of potential applications, from support...

Hypnosis can be defined as a procedure during which changes in sensations, perceptions, thoughts, feelings or behaviour are suggested. Hypnosis can be used to amplify whatever it is about therapy that makes it therapeutic. It permits a wide range of choices regarding where and how to intervene in the patient's problems. In this paper, we set out to examine the rationale of using hypnotherapy to...

Up to 50% of children will experience a sleep problem. Early identification of sleep problems may prevent negative consequences, such as daytime sleepiness, irritability, behavioral problems, learning difficulties, motor vehicle crashes in teenagers, and poor academic performance. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs in 1% to 5% of children. Polysomnography is needed to diagnose the condition because...

INTRODUCTION The purpose of our study is to describe 4 cases of sexsomnia, a form of parasomnia characterised by sexual behaviour during sleep. METHODS Clinical history and video-polysomnography recordings from patients diagnosed with sexsomnia in the Multidisciplinary Sleep Unit at Hospital Clínic in Barcelona. RESULTS Three men and one woman between 28 and 43 years of age reported sexual ...

The most recent consensus of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine is that parasomnias are “undesirable physical events or experiences that occur during entry into sleep, within sleep or during arousals from sleep” (1). Parasomnias are often considered to be normal sleep phenomena, especially in children, and do not in general have a serious impact on sleep quality or quantity. However, in som...

Sleep problems are very prevalent during childhood and may have adverse developmental impact. The efficacy of a number of cognitive-behavioral interventions for the most prevalent problems such as difficulty falling asleep and night-wakings has been repeatedly demonstrated with relatively rapid outcomes and high success rates. Preventive interventions in infancy have shown some promise in lower...

If he had not witnessed the induction procedure, the casual observer might well believe a typical hypnotized subject was asleep. It was this sleeplike appear-ance that led Braid to coin the term "hypnosis" from the Greek hypnos (to sleep) and "somnambulist" from the Latin somnus (sleep) and ambulare (to walk), to describe the deeply hypnotized person. There are indeed many phe-nomenological par...