Safety Trials For Insomniacs

By David Bjerklie

Six of 10 American adults say they experience sleep problems on a weekly basis. Sleeping pills can help, but what are the risks of taking them night after night for months at a time? Most clinical trials study the effects over very short periods only. That's why there is so much interest in a new study sponsored by the drugmaker Sepracor and led by Dr. Andrew Krystal, director of Duke University's Sleep Research Laboratory and Insomnia Clinic. It monitored users of a Sepracor pill called Estorra (currently under review for approval by the FDA) in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study for six months and concluded that the drug was safe and effective for nightly use. Expect to see competitors testing long-term use of their sleep drugs.

--D.B.