Quality of sleep and it's related factors in the hospitalized elderly patients of Kashan hospitals in 2007

Poor sleep quality is one of the most common difficulties of old adults. With the advancing age, some changes occur in sleep quality, structure and circadian rhythm. These changes result in sleep disorders and frequent complaints in elderly people. The present study was conducted to assess the quality of sleep and its related factors in the hospitalized elderly patients in Kashan hospitals in 2007. A cross-sectional study was carried out on 390 cases (age over 65 years) of hospitalized elderly patients in Kashan hospitals through sequential sampling. A two-part questionnaire was used for data gathering. The first part consisted of 19 questions on personal data and the second part the questions of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). An overall score of "6" or higher was an indicator of "poor" quality of sleep. Student t-test, ANOVA and X² were applied for statistical analysis. About half of the samples (55.4%) were female and the rest were male. The mean age of samples was 71.8 ± 5.9 years. Of the total samples, 89.5% were married and 70.8% illiterate. The patients of surgical wards had a better quality of sleep than the medical wards (95%, CI=1.72-4.4). There was a significant association between the quality of sleep and education (p<0.01). The total quality of sleep was poor in hospitalized elderly patients, but somehow better for men (6.22±4.9) than women (8.32±4.33). A significant difference was identified in all aspects of sleep except the sleep duration and efficiency for both sexes. Dyspnea (9.3±4.56), change in sleep habits (8.77±4.35) and light stimulators (10.1±4.74) were among the most important factors affecting the quality of sleep. In addition, the quality of sleep had a significant relationship with the latency of falling sleep (p=0.0001), respiratory and blood disorders. The quality of sleep was poor in the elderly hospitalized patients. Some modifications in ward facilities and routines can help the elderly patients to have a better sleep quality during the hospitalization.