A survey the prevalence of sleep disorders and their management in the elderly in Jahrom City, 2008

Abstract

Introduction:One of the basic needs of human is sleep. Research has shown that poor quality of sleep is the 3rd problem in the elderly people, being one of their most common complaints and reason to refer to doctors. The objective of this survey is to study the frequency of sleep disorder and how to deal with it. Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted on 360 people aged 60 or older, using a self-made structured questionnaire and interview. The data entered into SPSS, version 11.5. Descriptive and analytical statistics such as Chi square and Fisher exact tests were used to analyze the data. Results:In this survey, the mean age of the subjects was 67.7±7.33; 70.3% suffered sleep disorder and 81.81% of them had primary insomnia. Sleep disorder showed a significant relationship whit marital status, gender, residency, education and employment. In this survey, 94.5% (239 men) that had sleep disorder used at least one of the non-pharmacological methods and7.5 percent of them used pharmacological methods to cope with sleep disorders. Conclusion:Considering the fact that most of the elderly people used one of the non-pharmacological methods to cope with sleep disorders but still the prevalence of sleep disorders is high, we can conclude that it can be the result of their inappropriate use. Therefore, we recommend that the health care staff should focus on educating the elderly people on how to use the nonpharmacological methods.

Descriptive study on sleep quality and its associated factors among elderly in urban population: Chidambaram

“…Lee et al, Quan et al and Sheikly et al also reported the same finding. [13][14][15] An explanation for this finding may be the differences among men and women respecting their biological and psychological responses to stress. Some studies reported that women experience higher levels of anxiety, concern, and stress on the other hand, gender affects the anatomy, biochemistry, and function of the brain.…”

“…Similarly several studies reported that married people had better sleep quality compared to their single or widowed counter parts. 8,12,14…”

The Prevalence of Self-Reported Sleep Problems and Some Factors Affecting It Among the Elderly in Amirkola

“…However, there are few studies in the country regarding the quality of sleep in the elderly and its related factors, most of which pertain to nursing homes (18)(19)(20)(21).The aim of this study was to declare the prevalence of self-reported sleep problems and some factors affecting it among the elderly in Amirkola.…”

Sleep Quality and Its Contributing Factors Among Elderly People: A Descriptive-Analytical Study

“…Conversely, several studies reported that married people had better sleep quality compared to their single or widowed counterparts (10,14,18) probably because they had the strong support of their spouses. The insignificant relationship of sleep quality with marital status in this study may be because our participants received support not only from their spouses, but also from their children, relatives, and society and thereby, they did not feel very much alone and had good sleep quality.…”

“…The most common sleep disorders in their study were difficulty in staying asleep, difficulty in falling asleep, and early morning awakening, respectively (13). Moreover, Torabi et al conducted a study on 360 elderly people who referred to rural and urban healthcare centers in Iran and reported that the prevalence rates of sleep disorders and primary sleeplessness among their participants were 70.3% and 81.8%, respectively (14).…”