Temazepam may help improve daytime sleep after shift work fatigue

Temazepam improved daytime sleep duration and reduced fragmentation among 16 UH-60 Army aviators.

• Subjects taking temazepam reported greater subjective alertness and less fatigue compared to those on placebo.
• While flight performance did not show consistent improvement with better daytime sleep, the temazepam group outperformed the placebo group on the Psychomotor Vigilance Task.
• The findings suggest that temazepam may mitigate some performance decrements typically associated with night shift work.
• Care should be taken when prescribing temazepam to ensure aviators have at least 8 hours available for sleep.

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