American Research Journal of Medicine and Surgery

Introduction: Sleep state misperception (SSM) intrigues sleep specialists as a disorder in which a complaint of insomnia is presented without any objective clinical evidence. International committees involved in producing sleep disorder classifications have included SSM in the insomnia group and classified this condition with a new name, paradoxical insomnia (PI). Objective: The aim of this work is to discuss the adoption of the term “paradoxical insomnia” by the last international classification. Method: To analyze the terms used in the international classification between 1979 and 2014, comparing literature and clinic experience. Results: Disease classification nomenclature represents health information for constructing meanings regarding the origin and evolution of the disease and the therapeutic process. The term PI allows the medical view of the patient to be glimpsed. Under this condition, there is a dissociation between physical sleep and sleep as a psychological experience. Conclusions: The new nomenclature (Paradoxical Insomnia) emphasizes the paradox that exists between objective and subjective data, but what needs to be considered is the patient’s experience of psychological deprivation of sleep. We believe that the term “sleep state misperception” is more appropriate, since it is closer to the subjective experience of patients, taking into consideration the psychological suffering and the physical and mental wastage.