Noise-related sleep disturbances: does gender matter?

Women sleep differently and report differently about sleep disturbances than men. However, it is unclear whether the sleep of women and men is affected differently by traffic noise exposure. We aimed to address gender specific noise effects by using objective and subjective exposure measures as well as objective and subjective outcome data. In a questionnaire survey conducted in 2008 including 733 women and 533 men from Basel, Switzerland, with follow-up 1 year later, we collected data on subjective sleep disturbances and annoyance to road traffic noise. Objective noise exposure data was obtained using validated propagation models. In a nested diary study with 119 participants, objective sleep efficiency and sleep duration was measured by means of actigraphic devices for 1551 nights. Data were analyzed using random intercept mixed-effects multilevel regression models adjusted for relevant confounding factors. Objectively measured sleep duration in highly exposed men (>55 dB) was reduced by 1.5 h (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.3-0.8 h) compared with low exposed men (<30 dB). No noise effect on sleep duration was observed in women. The association of modeled noise exposure with self-reported sleep quality rating was also more pronounced in men (-0.8 unit, 95% CI: -1.4 to -0.2) than in women (-0.3 unit, 95% CI: -0.8 to 0.2). However, in highly annoyed women reduction in sleep quality and well-being rating tended to be stronger than in highly annoyed men. Our study provides some indications that noise exposure affects men's sleep differently than women's sleep, which may have distinct long-term health consequences.