Sleep fluctuations precede self-reported mood changes in bipolar disorder: results from the BipoSense study

Background The temporal relationship between sleep and mood changes in bipolar disorder (BD) has been investigated before, and this paper aims to replicate results from previous analyses while adding new details to the understanding of the relationship between fluctuations of sleep and mood. Furthermore, we comment on the use of sleep changes as a prodrome to mood changes in BD, which could improve clinical outcomes. Methods BD outpatients in remission (N = 29) recorded daily their sleep of the past 24 hours and rated their mood on a visual analogue scale for 1 year (total of 10,587 study days). Cross-correlation functioning was employed to identify potential relationships between self-reported sleep values and mood scores, for both the days before and after a change in mood. Results 41% of participants reported a negative relationship between changes in total time spent in bed and mood the following day, e.g. spending more time in bed before a shift towards depressive symptoms. Additionally, 21%-28% of all participants experienced an increase (or decrease) in their 7-day sleep average (sleep duration and awake in bed duration) in the week before a change in mood towards a lower (or higher) score. Only a few participants showed any relationship between changes in the 7-day variability of sleep and mood change. Conclusion Our findings align with and support those of earlier studies with similar designs. The duration of sleep and time in bed may serve as early indicators of mood changes in BD for about two-fifths of patients, and integrating these symptoms into clinical practice may help anticipate critical clinical shifts.