Daytime sleepiness: a factor correlated with mental health of older people

Increased population of older people in recent decades has brought the health issues of them at forefront. Mental health and sleep problems are، both، common in elderly. This study intended to investigate on the relations between these two.

The present study is a cross-sectional، Descriptive- analytic one which has been implemented on retired elderly، presenting at the Retirement Organization and its agents in Tehran. 390 elderly entered the study through easy sampling and responded to a three part questionnaire including a demographic check list، General Health Questionnaire-15. And Epworth Sleepiness Scale. Gathered data analyzed by t- test، K Square، and ANOVA.

Of the participants 51% were male، 66. 8% were married، and 49% were in the age range of 60-64. 29% suffered from mild to severe daytime sleepiness and 46% had mental health problems. Mental health، as an independent factor، had a significant statistical relation with sleepiness (p < 0. 05).

Given to the study finding، further research with the aim of determining the predictive value of each factor is recommended.