Web program helps insomniacs kick the pill habit
NCT ID NCT02720458
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 31, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tested whether a simple internet-based self-help program could help people with long-term insomnia stop using sleeping pills like benzodiazepines or Z-drugs. The program used sleep restriction and stimulus control techniques. 62 adults who had been taking sleep medication for at least 3 months and wanted to quit were enrolled. The goal was to see if the online program, combined with a doctor's advice, made it easier to stop the pills compared to just tapering off alone.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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62 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Oct 2016
- Finished
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Nov 2019
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Patient complaining of persistent insomnia without co-morbidities (DSM-5) and treated for at least 3 months with monotherapy of: * Zopiclone or Zolpidem with usual doses (3.5 doses per week at least to a maximum of 14 per week) OR Intermediate half-life benzodiazepines included in the appendix 1 list with usual doses (3.5 doses per week at least to a maximum of 14 per week) * Motivated to stop hypnotic treatment (score \>5 on a 1 to 10 degrees VAS) * 18 to 75 years old, * Man or woman, * Having an internet connection, * Affiliated to a national health service, * Having given written informed consent to participate in the trial. Exclusion Criteria: * Patient with 2 psychotropic drugs or more taken daily for insomnia complaints (antidepressant, anxiolytic and antihistamine treatments will be allowed if they are prescribed for a stabilized mood and/or anxiety disorder). * Patient not believing in short-term simple self-help program * Insomnia with comorbidities other than a stabilized mood and/or anxiety disorder * Night and shift-workers, * Current Psychiatric disorder : mood disorder (depression, bipolar disorder) with a BDI score \> 19, anxiety disorder, psychosis * All sleep disorders other than persistent insomnia (clinical interview), * Progressive neurological diseases that include restless legs syndrome, * Unstable Cardiovascular disease, * Unstable respiratory or endocrinological diseases (clinical interview), * Drug addiction, alcohol addiction during the previous 6 months (clinical interview), * Having undertaken trans-meridian travel (± 3H) in the previous 1 month * Pregnant or lactating woman, * Current participation in psychotherapy.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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AP-HP Hôpital Pitié-Salpétrière
Paris, 75013, France
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APHP Hôpital Raymond Poincaré
Garches, 92380, France
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APHP Hôtel-Dieu de Paris
Paris, 75181, France
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CHRU de Lille
Lille, 59037, France
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CHU de Bordeaux
Bordeaux, 33076, France
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CHU de Montpellier
Montpellier, 34295, France
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