30.06.2013 Views

Sick and Tired: Understanding and Managing Sleep Difficulties in ...

Sick and Tired: Understanding and Managing Sleep Difficulties in ...

Sick and Tired: Understanding and Managing Sleep Difficulties in ...

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

of their sleep difficulties co<strong>in</strong>cided with the onset of pa<strong>in</strong> (Mor<strong>in</strong>, Kowatch, & Wade,<br />

1989). However, it is unlikely that these relationships of complex constructs are l<strong>in</strong>ear<br />

(Call-Schmidt & Richardson, 2003) <strong>and</strong> longitud<strong>in</strong>al studies explor<strong>in</strong>g the <strong>in</strong>terplay<br />

between these factors over time are needed to draw strong <strong>in</strong>ferences.<br />

In addition to the higher rates of sleep difficulties reported <strong>in</strong> people with chronic pa<strong>in</strong><br />

conditions, there is also emerg<strong>in</strong>g evidence of a higher prevalence of specific sleep<br />

disorders with an underly<strong>in</strong>g organic cause that is not directly related to the chronic pa<strong>in</strong><br />

condition. In a study utilis<strong>in</strong>g polysomnography <strong>in</strong> patients with rheumatoid arthritis, it<br />

was revealed that 8 of the 13 patients (62%) studied were found to have sleep apnoea,<br />

periodic leg movement disorder, or a comb<strong>in</strong>ation of the two (Lavie et al, (1991). These<br />

f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs were supported by Mahowald, Mahowald, Bundlie <strong>and</strong> Ytterverg (1989) who<br />

found that <strong>in</strong> a sample of 16 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, all participants displayed<br />

frequent movements of their arms <strong>and</strong> legs <strong>in</strong>dicative of periodic limb movement<br />

disorder, <strong>and</strong> two participants were diagnosed with sleep apnoea. However, these<br />

f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs are limited by the very small sample sizes employed <strong>and</strong> the lack of age <strong>and</strong><br />

gender matched controls (Menefee et al., 2000). Further, the above studies do not<br />

explore the possible mechanisms that may be caus<strong>in</strong>g the higher levels of sleep<br />

difficulties with<strong>in</strong> the chronic pa<strong>in</strong> population. The use of polysomnography for<br />

research, <strong>and</strong> cl<strong>in</strong>ical purposes, is also reduced due to the cost <strong>and</strong> difficulties access<strong>in</strong>g<br />

polysomnographic equipment.<br />

Factors Affect<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Sleep</strong> Quality <strong>in</strong> Chronic Pa<strong>in</strong><br />

As described earlier <strong>in</strong> this chapter, a number of factors can affect sleep quality <strong>and</strong><br />

these may be of particular importance <strong>in</strong> patients with chronic pa<strong>in</strong>. For example, older<br />

adults are at greater risk of experienc<strong>in</strong>g a chronic pa<strong>in</strong> condition <strong>and</strong> poor sleep <strong>and</strong><br />

that the ag<strong>in</strong>g process seems to affect changes to the underly<strong>in</strong>g sleep structure. Because<br />

higher levels of physical activity have been found to be associated with better sleep<br />

quality (Br<strong>and</strong> et al., 2010) it may also be the case that as chronic pa<strong>in</strong> can reduce<br />

engagement <strong>in</strong> physical activity (through the need to rest or take a daytime nap to<br />

relieve symptoms of pa<strong>in</strong>), that the reduced physical activity may consequently affect<br />

sleep quality (Cohen, Menefee, Doghramji, Anderson, & Frank, 2000). Although this<br />

<strong>in</strong>terpretation was not supported <strong>in</strong> a cross-sectional study of 287 chronic pa<strong>in</strong> patients<br />

31

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!