Light Treatment to Shift-working Nurses

Shift-Work Sleep Disorder Clinical Trial

Official title:

The Effects of Bright Light on Adaptation to Night Work Among Nurses

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT02978053
• Other study ID #: UiB112016
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: November 2016
• Est. completion date: June 2019

Study information

• Verified date: October 2019
• Source: University of Bergen
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

This project examines 1) the effects of appropriately timed bright light on adaptation (in terms of sleep and sleepiness) to three consecutive night shifts; and 2) the effects of such bright light on re-adaptation (in terms of sleep and sleepiness) to a day-oriented schedule after the night shift period.

Description:

Shift workers frequently experience sleepiness during night shifts, which may have consequences for performance. Sleep duration is often shortened after a night shift. Properly timed bright light treatment is efficient in delaying the circadian rhythm and can enhance alertness, increase performance and prolong sleep after night shifts. There is a lack of studies on light treatment to rotating shift workers. This study is a randomized controlled crossover trial evaluating the effect of bright light treatment on sleep and sleepiness in rotating shift workers with three consecutive night shifts. The aim is to evaluate whether bright light treatment improves adaptation to three consecutive night shifts (reduces sleepiness during night shifts and improves sleep after night shifts), as well as whether such treatment affects re-adaptation to a day-oriented schedule after the night shift period.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 35
• Est. completion date: June 2019
• Est. primary completion date: June 2019
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• A rotating shift work schedule involving three days without night shifts, followed by three consecutive night shifts, followed by three days without night shifts

• Problems with sleepiness during night shifts

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pregnancy

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Shift-Work Sleep Disorder
• Sleep Disorders, Circadian Rhythm
• Sleep Wake Disorders

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Bright light
Bright light for 30 minutes during night shifts (between 2 AM and 3 AM the first night, between 3 AM and 4 AM the second night, between 4 AM and 5 AM the third night).
• Red light
Red light for 30 minutes during night shifts (between 2 AM and 3 AM the first night, between 3 AM and 4 AM the second night, between 4 AM and 5 AM the third night).

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Norway	University of Bergen	Bergen	Hordaland

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University of Bergen

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Norway, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Sleepiness during the night shifts	Self-reported using the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS)	3 days
Secondary	Psychomotor vigilance during night shifts	Objective data from a 5 min computer based psychomotor vigilance test (PC-PVT) taken once during each night shift	3 days
Secondary	Sleep after the night shifts	Self-reported using a sleep diary; objective data from actigraphs	3 days
Secondary	Sleepiness during the days after the night shift period	Self-reported using the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS)	3 days
Secondary	Sleep during the days after the night shift period	Self-reported using a sleep diary; objective data from actigraphs	3 days
Secondary	Functioning on each shift, and shift period in total, compared to under normal conditions	Self-reported perception of effect of intervention	6 days