POLYSOMNOGRAPHY IN DRUG DEVELOPMENT

Polysomnography in drug development is used to detect desirable and un desirable effects of drugs on normal and disturbed sleep. Although thi s method is essential for the approval of neu hypnotic drugs, it is qu ite often neglected in the development of drugs that show unwanted sid e effects on normal sleep. In this review, the requirements for qualif ied polysomnography are described, the strong and weak points of the m ethod are discussed, and its importance for the drug development proce ss is pointed out.