A benzodiazepine hypnotic facilitates adaptation of circadian rhythms and sleep-wake homeostasis to an eight hour delay shift simulating westward jet lag.

Triazolam significantly facilitated adaptation to a shifted sleep-wake cycle in a controlled study involving 6 healthy men.

• The study involved two double-blind, placebo-controlled experiments simulating an 8-hour delay shift in sleep-wake and dark-light cycles.
• Administration of Triazolam (0.5 mg) was timed 3 hours before bedtime on the first night and at bedtime on subsequent nights.
• Placebo treatment resulted in disturbances in sleep and hormonal secretion, with gradual re-entrainment of circadian rhythms.
• Triazolam accelerated the re-entrainment of circadian rhythms and normalized markers of sleep-wake homeostasis.
• The findings suggest that benzodiazepine hypnotics with chronobiotic properties may aid in adapting to jet lag or night work.

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