STUDY OBJECTIVES: We aimed to examine various sleep measures as determinants of sickness absence while considering confounders. DESIGN: Nationally representative Health 2000 Survey linked with sickness absence data from the Finnish Social Insurance Institution. SETTING: Finland. PARTICIPANTS: Working-aged women (n = 1,875) and men (n = 1,885). INTERVENTIONS: N/A. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Insomnia-related symptoms, early morning awakenings, being more tired during daytime than other people of same age, use of sleeping pills, excessive daytime sleepiness, probable sleep apnea (4 items about snoring/apnea), and reporting that sleep duration varies between different seasons were examined as determinants of sickness absence over a 7.2 year follow-up. Poisson and gamma regression models were fitted. After adjusting age, all examined sleep disturbances except excessive daytime sleepiness were associated with sickness absence among men (RRs 1.3-2.5). Among women, after adjusting for age, insomnia-related symptoms, early morning awakenings, being more tired than others, and use of sleeping pills were associated with sickness absence (RRs 1.4-1.8). After further adjustments for education, working conditions, health behaviors, and objectively measured mental and somatic health, the associations somewhat attenuated but mainly remained. The optimal sleep duration with the lowest risk of sickness absence was 7.6 hours for women and 7.8 hours for men. Although persistence of other health problems could affect the estimates, direct costs due to sickness absence could decrease by up to 28% if sleep disturbances could be fully addressed. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the need for prevention of sleep disturbances and promotion of optimal sleep length to prevent sickness absence.
STUDY OBJECTIVES: We aimed to examine various sleep measures as determinants of sickness absence while considering confounders. DESIGN: Nationally representative Health 2000 Survey linked with sickness absence data from the Finnish Social Insurance Institution. SETTING: Finland. PARTICIPANTS: Working-aged women (n = 1,875) and men (n = 1,885). INTERVENTIONS: N/A. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS:Insomnia-related symptoms, early morning awakenings, being more tired during daytime than other people of same age, use of sleeping pills, excessive daytime sleepiness, probable sleep apnea (4 items about snoring/apnea), and reporting that sleep duration varies between different seasons were examined as determinants of sickness absence over a 7.2 year follow-up. Poisson and gamma regression models were fitted. After adjusting age, all examined sleep disturbances except excessive daytime sleepiness were associated with sickness absence among men (RRs 1.3-2.5). Among women, after adjusting for age, insomnia-related symptoms, early morning awakenings, being more tired than others, and use of sleeping pills were associated with sickness absence (RRs 1.4-1.8). After further adjustments for education, working conditions, health behaviors, and objectively measured mental and somatic health, the associations somewhat attenuated but mainly remained. The optimal sleep duration with the lowest risk of sickness absence was 7.6 hours for women and 7.8 hours for men. Although persistence of other health problems could affect the estimates, direct costs due to sickness absence could decrease by up to 28% if sleep disturbances could be fully addressed. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the need for prevention of sleep disturbances and promotion of optimal sleep length to prevent sickness absence.
Authors: Erkki Kronholm; Mikael Sallinen; Pertti Era; Timo Suutama; Raimo Sulkava; Timo Partonen Journal: J Sleep Res Date: 2010-12-06 Impact factor: 3.981
Authors: Sari Stenholm; Erkki Kronholm; Päivi Sainio; Katja Borodulin; Pertti Era; Mikael Fogelholm; Timo Partonen; Tarja Porkka-Heiskanen; Seppo Koskinen Journal: J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci Date: 2010-02-16 Impact factor: 6.053
Authors: Kirsten Nabe-Nielsen; Matias Brødsgaard Grynderup; Theis Lange; Johan Hviid Andersen; Jens Peter Bonde; Paul Maurice Conway; Anne Helene Garde; Annie Høgh; Linda Kaerlev; Reiner Rugulies; Åse Marie Hansen Journal: Int Arch Occup Environ Health Date: 2016-05-02 Impact factor: 3.015
Authors: Eivind Schjelderup Skarpsno; Paul Jarle Mork; Tom Ivar Lund Nilsen; Marie Birk Jørgensen; Andreas Holtermann Journal: Int Arch Occup Environ Health Date: 2018-11-19 Impact factor: 3.015
Authors: Jaana I Halonen; Tea Lallukka; Jaana Pentti; Sari Stenholm; Naja H Rod; Marianna Virtanen; Paula Salo; Mika Kivimäki; Jussi Vahtera Journal: Sleep Date: 2017-01-01 Impact factor: 5.849
Authors: Tea Lallukka; Jaana I Halonen; Børge Sivertsen; Jaana Pentti; Sari Stenholm; Marianna Virtanen; Paula Salo; Tuula Oksanen; Marko Elovainio; Jussi Vahtera; Mika Kivimäki Journal: Int J Epidemiol Date: 2017-08-01 Impact factor: 7.196