Sleep Quality in Older People: The Impact of Age, Professional Activity, Financial Situation, and Chronic Diseases During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic negatively affected health and social life, notably deteriorating sleep quality in older adults. Studies report inconsistent findings on sleep disturbances during this period, influenced by various physiological, emotional, and sociodemographic factors. This study aimed to identify these determining factors. Material/Methods: The study was conducted among 342 people 60 years of age or older participating in online classes of randomly selected Senior Clubs and the University of the Third Age in the southern regions of Poland. Results: Sleep problems (PSQI >5 points) were diagnosed in 250 subjects (83.6%). Logistic regression analysis showed that the quality of sleep significantly depends on: age, as people aged 66-70 were more likely to have better sleep quality than people aged 60-65 (OR=3.07), and those over 70 scored better than people aged 60-65 (OR=2.87); current job – employed people have a better chance of better sleep quality (OR=3.08) than unemployed people; financial situation, people assessing their financial situation as very good/good had a better chance of better sleep quality (OR=2.00) compared to people assessing their financial situation as very bad, bad/average; chronic diseases, people without chronic diseases had a chance of better sleep quality (OR=2.45) than people with chronic diseases. Conclusions: Age, financial situation, current job, and chronic disease were the most important factors determining sleep quality in older people. The identification of factors affecting sleep quality can be used as important data to develop interventions and programs to improve sleep quality.