Prevalence of sleep disturbances and long-term reduced health-related quality of life after critical care: a prospective multicenter cohort study
2008

Sleep Disturbances and Quality of Life After Intensive Care

Sample size: 1625 publication Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Lotti Orwelius, Anders Nordlund, Peter Nordlund, Ulla Edéll-Gustafsson, Folke Sjöberg

Primary Institution: Linköping University/Linköping University Hospital

Hypothesis

Hospitalised patients with an ICU stay have an affected sleep long after the intensive care period has ended, but it is the result of concurrent disease rather than ICU-related factors.

Conclusion

Sleep disturbances are common after critical care, with little change in quality of sleep patterns over time, primarily influenced by concurrent diseases.

Supporting Evidence

  • Patients reported significantly more sleep disturbances than the reference group.
  • Concurrent disease was the main factor affecting sleep in ICU patients.
  • There was little change in sleep quality from before to after ICU stay.

Takeaway

People who stay in the ICU often have trouble sleeping even after they leave, and this is mostly because of other health problems they have, not because of their time in the ICU.

Methodology

The study included 1,625 patients admitted to ICUs, with evaluations of sleep disturbances and health-related quality of life at 6 and 12 months post-discharge.

Potential Biases

There is a risk of recall bias and a significant loss to follow-up, which may affect the results.

Limitations

The study used a reference group from the general population, which may not fully represent the ICU population's characteristics.

Participant Demographics

The study group included 497 patients, with a mean age of 52.4 years, and a gender distribution of 274 males and 223 females.

Statistical Information

P-Value

p<0.01

Confidence Interval

95% CI for OR: 2.93 to 4.46 at 6 months; 2.93 to 4.47 at 12 months

Statistical Significance

p<0.01

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/cc6973

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