Objective: Insomnia is a prevalent sleep complaint which has been reported to be greatly associated with reduced health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) and increased healthcare resource use. This study documents the prevalence of insomnia, and its impact on patients' HR-QOL and healthcare resource use in managed-care settings in the US.
Design and setting: A multi-site survey of 5 American Medical Group Association (AMGA) clinics was conducted. Each clinic mailed questionnaires to 1100 randomly selected individuals enrolled in its healthcare system and distributed questionnaires to 400 individuals during a clinic visit and prior to seeing a physician. The questionnaire was a form of the Health Status Questionnaire with the well-validated Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form (SF-36) Health Survey, a 3-question depression screen, a sleep questionnaire, demographic variables, and questions about medical encounters and prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drug use.
Main outcome measures and results: Approximately one-third of managed-care enrollees in this study reported insomnia with daytime dysfunction. Individuals with insomnia reported lower HR-QOL scores and increased healthcare resource use compared with individuals with no insomnia. After controlling for demographic variable and comorbid conditions, the negative association of insomnia remained significant on all HR-QOL scores, emergency room visits, calls to the physician and OTC drug use.
Conclusions: Insomnia is significantly associated with reduced HR-QOL and increased healthcare resource use in enrollees of managed-care organisations.