The effect of medication on sleep

Accurate interpretation of a polysomnogram is dependent on knowing factors that can influence the signals being collected. Many medications can alter the signals collected or can change the overall sleep architecture. Understanding the effects of medications on sleep is critically important in certain diagnoses such as narcolepsy. The purpose of this article is not to provide an exhaustive list of the effects of medication on sleep but rather to focus on classes of medications and how they may alter the polysomnogram or the multiple sleep latency test.