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Cited by 1,071Sleep and related disordersObstructive Sleep Apnea ResearchAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes

Insomnia and Its Treatment: Prevalence and Correlates

Mellinger, Glen D.·1985·Archives of General Psychiatry
DOI 10.1001/archpsyc.1985.01790260019002
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Abstract

Data for this report come from a nationally representative probability sample survey of noninstitutionalized adults, aged 18 to 79 years. The survey, conducted in 1979, found that insomnia afflicts 35% of all adults during the course of a year; about half of these persons experience the problem as serious. Those with serious insomnia tend to be women and older, and they are more likely than others to display high levels of psychic distress and somatic anxiety, symptoms resembling major depression, and multiple health problems. During the year prior to the survey, 2.6% of adults had used a medically prescribed hypnotic. Typically, use occurred on brief occasions, one or two days at a time, or for short durations of regular use lasting less than two weeks. The survey also found a small group of hypnotic users (11% of all users; 0.3% of all adults) who reported using the medication regularly for a year or longer. If we include anxiolytics and antidepressants, 4.3% of adults had used a medically prescribed psychotherapeutic drug that was prescribed for sleep; 3.1% had used an over-the-counter sleeping pill. The majority of serious insomniacs (85%) were untreated by either prescribed or over-the-counter medications.

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  • There is a large need for psychological services for insomnia; about one third of adults report insomnia symptoms and about 10% meet diagnostic criteria for an insomnia disorder.

    “For example, there is a huge need for psychological services for the treatment of insomnia, a significant health problem with one third of the adult population reporting symptoms of insomnia and approximately 10% meeting diagnostic criteria for an insomnia disorder [53–56].”

    From A Behavior Change Model for Internet Interventions (2009) · cites this paper as [54]

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Authors
Mellinger, G. D.
Corresponding author
Mellinger, Glen D.
Venue
Archives of General Psychiatry
Publisher
American Medical Association (AMA)
Published
1985-03-01
Volume
42
Issue
3
Pages
225
ISSN
0003-990X (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1001/archpsyc.1985.01790260019002
OpenAlex
W1964403954
Cited by
1,071
References
12
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 22 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 27 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 24 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 29 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 32 · 2012: 29
FWCI
11.80
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Archives of General Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
National Institute of Mental Health (MH-29819)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Obstructive Sleep Apnea Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
Keywords
insomnia, insomnia prevalence, hypnotic medication use, anxiolytics, antidepressants, psychiatric distress, somatic anxiety, major depressive disorder, health problems, sex differences, age differences, chronic drug administration
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Antidepressive Agents, Anxiety Disorders, Attitude to Health, Depressive Disorder, Drug Utilization, Nonprescription Drugs, Female, Health Surveys, Humans, Hypnotics and Sedatives, Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders, Male, Middle Aged, National Institutes of Health (U.S.), Drug Prescriptions, Research Design, Sex Factors, Anti-Anxiety Agents, United States

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