The importance of chronotype in shift work research [Elektronische Ressource] / vorgelegt von Myriam Juda

Myriam Juda

Sujets

• Psychologie

Informations

• Publié par: ludwig-maximilians-universitat_munchen
• Publié le: 01 janvier 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 24
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 3 Mo

Extrait

The Importance of Chronotype in Shift Work Research



Inaugural –Dissertation
zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades
der Philosophie an der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
München



vorgelegt von
Myriam Juda
München, den 18.3.2010





Berichterstatter:
Referent: Prof. Dr. R. Schandry
Koferent: Prof. Dr. T. Roenneberg

Tag der mündliche Prüfung: 11.5.2010







To my Grandmother
Denise Haan







2



Table of Contents

1 General Introduction 7
1.1 The Circadian Clock 8
1.1.1 An Historical Overview of Circadian Research 8
1.1.2 Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) 11
1.1.3 The Sleep-Wake Cycle 14
1.1.4 Entrainment 17
1.1.5 Zeitgeber 21
1.1.6 Chronotype 23
1.1.7 Internal De-Synchronization 26
1.2 Adverse Effects of Shift Work 26
1.2.1 Disturbed Sleep 27
1.2.2 Fatigue 28
1.2.3 Psychological Distress 30
1.2.4 Physical Health Problems 31
1.3 Why Is Shift Work Problematic? 37
1.3.1 Circadian Misalignment 37
1.3.2 Circadian Adjustment to Shift Work 41
1.3.3 Individual Differences in Circadian Alignment to Shift Work 43
1.4 Overview and Research Aims 44
2 General Methods 47
2.1 Participants 47
2.1.1 Ethical Approval 48
2.2 Materials 49
3

2.2.1 Questionnaires 49
2.2.2 Sleep Logs 57
®2.2.3 Daqtometer 57
®2.2.4 iButtons 58
2.2.5 Software for Data Handling and Computation 59
2.3 Statistical Computations 59
Shift3 Project One: From the MCTQ to the MCTQ 61
3.1 Key Parameters of the MCTQ for Day Workers 61
3.2 Assessment of Chronotype 64
Shift3.3 Evaluation of the MCTQ 67
3.4 Methods 68
3.4.1 Participants 68
3.4.2 Materials 69
3.4.3 Procedure 70
3.5 Results 71
Shift 3.5.1 Describing the Main MCTQ Parameters 71
3.5.2 Shift Workers Sleep Less 74
3.5.3 Assessing Phase of Entrainment in Shift Workers 75
E3.5.4 MSF Is the Best Choice for Assessing Chronotype in Shift Workers 78
3.6 Discussion 82
Shift3.6.1 MCTQ Assessment of Sleep-Wake Behaviour 82
3.6.2 How to Assess Chronotype in Shift Workers 85
Shift3.6.3 Evaluation of the MCTQ 85
Shift4 Project Two: Validating the MCTQ 87
4.1 Setting the Framework for the Validation Studies 87
Shift 4.2 Day to Day Sleep Logs: Can the Pattern be Captured by the MCTQ ? 89
4.2.1 Methods 90
4.2.2 Results 92
Shift4.3 Behavioural Phase Markers and their Relationship to the MCTQ :
Actimetry 97
4.3.1 Methods 98
4.3.2 Results 99
4

Shift4.4 Physiological Phase Markers and their Relationship to the MCTQ :
Body Temperature Regulation 102
4.4.1 Methods 102
4.4.2 Results 103
4.5 Generalizing MEQ and MCTQ Findings to Shift Workers 107
4.5.1 Methods 107
4.5.2 Results 108
4.6 Discussion of the Validation Studies 109
5 Project Three: Reconsidering Adverse Effects of Shift Work in the Light of
Chronotype 111
5.1 Chronotype and Sleep in Shift Workers 112
5.1.1 Methods 113
5.1.2 Results 114
5.1.3 Discussion 121
5.2 Chronotype and Psychological Well-being During Work Hours 125
5.2.1 Methods 126
5.2.2 Results 127
5.2.3 Discussion 128
5.3 Attempts to Find Predictors for Health in Workers 129
5.3.1 Methods 131
5.3.2 Results 132
5.3.3 Discussion 138
5.4 Conclusion 141
6 Overall Discussion 143
Shift6.1 Evaluation and Validation of the MCTQ 143
6.2 Sleep and Wake Behaviour in Shift Workers 144
6.3 Chronotype-Specific Sleep and Wake Behaviour in Shift Workers 146
6.4 The Role of Chronotype in Helping Shift Workers Sleep and Feel Better 146
6.5 Sleep and Well-Being Predict Better Health 148
6.6 Study Limitations 149
6.7 On the Way to Recommendations 150

5

7 References 151
8 Summary 179
8.1 English Summary 179
8.2 Deutsche Zusammenfassung 184
9 Acknowledgements 190
9.1 To Scientists, Friends and Family 190
9.2 To Industry and Participants 191
10 Curriculum Vitae 193
6

1 General Introduction
It has been estimated that every year, as much as 20 million workers in the EU experience
work related health problems and an average of 5,720 people die as a consequence of work-
related accidents (European Statistical Data Support, 2009). Shift work was thereby shown
to be a major risk factor. Yet, increasing demands in global economy and around the clock
provision of medical and safety services have rendered shift work an integral and
indispensable constituent of modern society. As much as 22% of the working population in
the EU work shifts (International Labour Office Geneva, 2004). For the majority, shift
work is not a choice but a professional requirement.
Despite the last decades’ vast interest into questions related to shift work, we still
know very little about the causal pathways leading to health problems in shift workers. This
is largely due to past research not properly taking into account the functioning of the inner
circadian clock and its influences on shift workers’ ability to cope with the demands of
working shifts. The current project explores shift workers’ sleep and wake behaviour in the
field, with a particular emphasis on chronotype-specific differences and how these predict
tolerance to shift work, in terms of sleep, well-being, and physical health. Before presenting
the different studies, theoretical background and relevant issues within the fields of
chronobiology and shift work research will be introduced.
7 1 General Introduction




1.1 The Circadian Clock
Evolution has equipped living organisms not only with adaptations to spatial and social
niches but also to temporal ones. The physiology of microbes, plants and animals, including
humans, has adapted to the 24-hour rotation of the earth. Among the most conspicuous
temporal adaptations is the timing of activity and rest. Being at the right place at the right
time of day enables better access to valuable resources (e.g. food, mates) and protection
from predators. Such an adaptation would be greatly facilitated by an endogenous
programme – a circadian clock. An internal circadian clock provides organisms with the
amazing evolutionary benefit to anticipate events. Anticipation allows organisms to prepare
for environmental changes, such as for example growing fur or storing food before
temperature actually decreases. Anticipation also allows for better competition to limited
resources, by being one jump ahead of the other. For any organism that is prey of another, it
is of vital importance to “know” when a predator is most likely to be around. One would
expect natural selection to have favoured individuals with more precise mechanisms of
anticipation, whereby long-term evolutionary pressures made individuals increasingly
better at anticipating external events (for a review on temporal adaptations, see Roenneberg
& Foster, 1997).

1.1.1 An Historical Overview of Circadian Research
The periodic changes in biological functions have long been believed to underlie simple
responses to changes in environmental stimuli, such as cyclical changes in lightness and
8 1 General Introduction

darkness. This view was challenged when in 1729, a French geophysicist --Jean-Jacques de
Mairan, published his now well-known Observation Botanique. In this article, de Mairan
describes a bizarre observation that he made when placing a mimosa plant into a cupboard
over a few days. Although the mimosa was obviously devoid of external cycles of light and
darkness, it continued to fold and unfold its leaflets in the same rhythmical manner as it did
before, when it was standing next to the window. Moreover, the mimosa opened its leaflets
a few hours ahead of sunrise, as if it “knew” when a new day was about to begin. De
Mairan concluded that the plant’s rhythmical functioning must be self-sustained. Beyond
that and certainly ahead of his time, de Mairan extended his observation to humans with
disordered sleep, encouraging further studies to explore this issue.
It wasn’t until 1938, centuries later, that Nathanial Kleitman (now known as the
father of sleep research) and his graduate student, Bruce Richardson, took up residence 36
meters underground in a cave in Kentucky, USA, to investigate their own rhythms of sleep
and physiology. During their thirty-three day stay, Kleitman and Richardson lived on a 28-
hour body temperature cycle, consisting of nine hours of sleep and regular routines of
eating, reading, writing and walking. Jean-Jacques de Mairan was right -- when deprived of
external signals, the circadian clock continues to oscillate. The persistence of rhythms in the
absence of a dark-light cycle or other exogenous time signals clearly indicates the existence
of an internal timekeeping mechanism. Self-sustainability is one of the essential features
defining the circadian clock today.
9 1 General Introduction


Figure 1.1. Nathaniel Kleitman and Bruce Richardson, during their one month stay in a cave in
Kentucky