The effect of lemborexant for insomnia disorder

Background: Lemborexant has a low dependence potential, less muscle relaxant effect, and less effect on cognitive function. However, there have been no naturalistic reports in Japan clarifying the effect of lemborexant on insomnia disorder. We retrospectively examined the effectiveness of treatment with lemborexant. Methods: Insomnia was assessed using the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS). Efficacy outcome assessment was the Clinical Global Impressions–Improvement scale (CGI-I). Results: We analyzed 150 patients (male/female = 57/93) in total. The mean subject age and mean duration of illness were 47.8 ± 19.9 years and 4.2 ± 7.2 years, respectively. The average dose of lemborexant was 5.9 ± 2.0 mg. The mean AIS total score was a significant improved (6.6 ± 3.7–3.9 ± 3.3) ( p < 0.01). The mean CGI-I score was 3.2 ± 0.8. The 24-week continuation rates for lemborexant were 86.7%. Conclusion: Similar to the results obtained in previous studies, the CGI-I score, which is one of the objective indicators evaluated by the therapist, and the AIS, which is one of the subjective evaluations of patients, improved as well. The results of this study suggest that lemborexant may be safe and effective in patients with insomnia in real-world clinical practice.