# Sleep health in special populations

> **NIH NIH K24** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · 2024 · $130,173

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The goal of this renewal application is to provide support for mentoring of trainees and junior investigators in the
areas of sleep disorders and sleep health among patient populations who are “at risk.” The applicant’s current
research program focuses on treatment of sleep disorders in populations who have not been studied or who
have achieved less benefit from current evidence-based interventions. This program provides rich opportunities
for mentees to experience direct engagement in patient-oriented sleep research. Currently funded work focuses
on veterans with comorbid insomnia disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for whom standard
cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is less acceptable and less efficacious than among individuals
without PTSD. Based on emerging evidence that the theoretical underpinning and specific exercises of
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) present a viable approach to improving sleep when combined with
evidence-based behavioral strategies, a novel ACT-based insomnia treatment, called "Acceptance and the
Behavioral Changes to Treat Insomnia (ABC-I) is being tested in a clinical trial. ABC-I combines core behavioral
components (sleep restriction, stimulus control, sleep hygiene, relaxation) with ACT-based techniques will be
evaluated in a randomized trial. Using a comparative effectiveness design (n=200 randomized to ABC-I or
cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I)), the primary aims of the study are to evaluate the benefits of
ABC-I in reducing insomnia severity (non-inferiority) and PTSD symptoms (superiority) as compared to CBT-I.
Additional aims address potential mechanisms of change from before to after treatment and explore potential
ancillary benefits in terms of reducing other symptoms. The proposed analytic plan will simultaneously address
superiority of ABC-I over CBT-I for improving PTSD symptoms and non-inferiority of ABC-I compared to CBT-I
for improving insomnia symptoms. In addition to other ongoing and recently-completed projects, the study
provides rich opportunities for trainees to engage in all aspects of patient-oriented research on sleep disorders,
including direct interaction with research participants and engagement with data analysis and dissemination of
findings. The research environment at UCLA and VAGLAHS is rich with opportunities for learning and for
collaborative mentoring in areas of sleep health and sleep disorders. Building upon activities during the prior K-
24 award, the applicant will engage in formal leadership training and engage the support of a Leadership
Development Council.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10911359
- **Project number:** 5K24HL143055-07
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES
- **Principal Investigator:** Jennifer L Martin
- **Activity code:** K24 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $130,173
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-08-21 → 2028-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10911359

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10911359, Sleep health in special populations (5K24HL143055-07). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10911359. Licensed CC0.

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