Device: Electrodorn I, electrodes on forehead and neck
10 pts with objectively established insomnia were randomly selected from 40 volunteers solicited by newspaper ads. The subjects spent 3 initial nights in a sleep lab to establish baseline measurements, and then returned for 2 nights at the end of the study and again for follow-up. They were given 24, 15 minute CES treatments (N = 5) or simulated treatments (N = 5) in a double-blind manner and measured before and after treatment, and after a 14 day post treatment period. The MMPI was used to establish equivalency of groups. EEG latencies of sleep onset in minutes for the CES group pretreatment means was 60.8 to 10.6 post treatment, and for the sham group 60.5 to 58.8. The CES group had a significant decline in latency of sleep onset (P=.00077), percentage of bed time awake (CES pretreatment 19.334 to 4.192 post, and sham 17.296 pre to 18.500 post, P=.367), and percentage of total sleep time in stage 1 sleep. A significant increase in the total sleep time in stage 4 and total delta sleep was also found in the CES group. All differences found were maintained at the 2 week and 2 year follow up. No significant improvement was found in the placebo group. The author stated that we can now conclude that CES is effective in the treatment of chronic, sleep onset insomnia. No side effects were reported.
Weiss, Marc F. The treatment of insomnia through use of electrosleep: an EEG study. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 157(2):108 120, 1973.