Sleep Balance Profile

Overview:

ZRT is the only laboratory offering testing for the circadian rhythm of melatonin in concert with cortisol and cortisone to assess sleep/wake cycle dysfunction. Circulating melatonin is efficiently hydroxylated and conjugated with sulfate in the liver to form its primary metabolite, 6-sulfatoxymelatonin (MT6s), and excreted into urine; it is this metabolite that is measured in the Sleep Balance Profile. Adrenal cortisol, produced in response to stress, is also known for its diurnal variation linked to the sleep/wake cycle. It has the opposite pattern to melatonin production in a healthy individual. The Sleep Balance Profile allows clinicians to pinpoint imbalances of melatonin and cortisol circadian rhythms associated with acute or chronic sleep disturbances.