This study will determine whether eszopiclone will normalize sleep patterns and restore sleep-dependent enhancement of motor skill learning in patients with schizophrenia. The investigators will compare subjects taking a placebo to those taking 3 mg of eszopiclone with regard to: sleep architecture and sleep latency as measured by actigraphy and polysomnography and sleep-dependent motor skill learning.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Enrollment
25
3 mg of eszopiclone at bedtime on two consecutive nights
Placebo capsules looking identical to eszopiclone at bedtime on two consecutive nights
Mass General Hospital
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Overnight Change on Finger Tapping Task
The finger tapping task involves pressing four numerically labeled keys on a standard computer keyboard with the fingers of the left hand, repeating a five element sequence (4-1-3-2-4) "as quickly and accurately as possible" for 30s. During both training and test sessions, participants alternated tapping and resting for 30s for a total of 12 tapping trials. The measure was the number of correct sequences per trial. Overnight change was the percent change in correct sequences from the last three training trials to the first three test trials the following morning.
Time frame: Train on Day 3 and Test on Day 4 of study (experimental nights)
Sleep Spindle Density During Stage 2 Sleep as Measured by Polysomnography
2 baseline nights (Days 1 \&2); 2 experimental nights (Days 3 \&4)
Time frame: during two nights in an inpatient Clinical Research Center
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