Effects of hypnotics on sleep and psychomotor performance. A double-blind randomised study of lormetazepam, midazolam and zopiclone.

Lormetazepam, midazolam and zopiclone were compared as night medication in patients scheduled for elective surgery the next morning. Sixty patients divided at random into three groups, received double-blind lormetazepam 1 mg, midazolam 15 mg or zopiclone 7.5 mg, by mouth at 2200 hours. The quality of sleep was assessed at 0700 hours from responses to a questionnaire, and psychomotor function by comparing paper and pencil (p-deletion) and Maddox Wing tests with reference values from the day before. The three hypnotics were equally effective as sleep medication for time until onset of sleep, duration of sleep and condition upon awakening, whereas zopiclone provided significantly fewer (p less than 0.05) spontaneous awakenings. The p-deletion test did not differ in any of the three groups from the reference values. The ocular imbalance test in all three groups was significantly different (p less than 0.01) from control. The lormetazepam group scored significantly better (p less than 0.05) than the zopiclone group. No side effects were seen.