SUBJECTIVE SLEEP AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN INDIVIDUALS WITH SPINAL CORD INJURY

K. Siceva¹, D. Stirane^1,2, A. Nulle¹

¹National Rehabilitation Centre Vaivari, Jurmala, Latvia, ²Riga Stradins University, Department of Rehabilitation, Riga, Latvia

Background: It is estimated that every year between 250000 and 500000 individuals suffer from a spinal cord injury. Due to various factors, individuals with spinal cord injury often experience poorer subjective quality of sleep (e.g. difficulty falling and staying asleep throughout the night, short sleep duration), which has an adverse effect on their general health and quality of life. Factors as the risk of sleep apnoea, pain and excessive daytime sleepiness is associated with poor sleep quality in individuals with spinal cord injury.

Purpose: To analyse the subjective sleep and quality of life in individuals with spinal cord injury, at least one year after injury.

Methods: A quantitative non-experimental cross-sectional study was carried out. 52 participants (16 women and 36 men) with spinal cord injury, at least one year after injury, who met the inclusion criteria were included in this study. A one-time assessment of participants was performed by using standardized assessment instruments- Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Berlin Questionnaire (BQ), The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), The SF-36v2 Health Survey (SF- 36v2).

Results: Traumatic cause of spinal cord injury was present in 73,1 % of participants (n= 38) and non- traumatic cause in 26,9 % of participants (n=14). The mean age of the participants was 47,7 years (SD=10,6). The results showed that 59,6 % of participants with spinal cord injury had poor subjective sleep quality, while 40,4 % had good subjective sleep quality. Minimum mean value of the seven scales out of eight that measures quality of life was 29,3 points (SD= 9,5), while the maximum mean value was 46,7 points (SD=7,2). Individuals with spinal cord injury had an optimal level of quality of life in one scale (vitality) which was scored with 51,8 points (SD=8,3).

Conclusions: Individuals with spinal cord injury have poor subjectively assessed sleep and quality of life, at least one year after injury. There is no association between subjectively assessed sleep quality and quality of life in individuals with spinal cord injury, at least one year after the injury, despite the fact that results showed health- related quality of life below the normal range. No association was found between subjective sleep quality and subjective risk of sleep apnoea and daytime sleepiness in individuals with spinal cord injury. Individuals with spinal cord injury, despite the subjective sleep quality assessment, showed low subjectively assessed risk of sleep apnoea and daytime sleepiness. In future research more accurate assessment methods could be used, such as polysomnography, which allows to evaluate the structure, efficiency and quality of sleep in an objective way.

Implications: It would be valuable to update knowledge about poor subjective sleep and quality of life impact on individuals with spinal cord injury among specialists in the field of rehabilitation, to promote successful rehabilitation outcomes.

Funding acknowledgements: This study was not supported by any funding sources.

Keywords:
spinal cord injury
sleep
quality of life

Topics:
Neurology: spinal cord injury

Did this work require ethics approval? Yes

Institution: Riga Stradins University

Committee: Riga Stradins University Research Ethics Committee

Ethics number: 2-PĒK-4/90/2022