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Cited by 19Sleep and related disordersObstructive Sleep Apnea ResearchMental Health Treatment and Access

Attitudes towards treatment among patients suffering from sleep disorders. A Latin American survey

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Blanco, Margarita, Kriguer, Norberto, Lloret, Santiago Pérez, Cardinali, Daniel P·2003·BMC Family Practice
DOI 10.1186/1471-2296-4-17PMC PMC280681
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Although sleep disorders are common, they frequently remain unnoticed by the general practitioner. Few data are available about the willingness and reasons of patients with sleep disturbances to seek for medical assistance. METHODS: The results of a cross-sectional community-based multinational survey in three major Latin American urban areas, i.e. Buenos Aires, Mexico City and Sao Paulo, are reported. Two-hundred subjects suffering sleep disturbances and 100 non-sufferers were selected from the general population in each city (total number: 600 sufferers vs. 300 non-sufferers). A structured interview was conducted, sleep characteristics, feelings about sleep disturbances and strategies to cope with those problems being recorded. Data were analyzed by employing either t-test or analysis of variance (ANOVA) to the Z-transformed proportions. RESULTS: 22.7 +/- 3.5 % (mean +/- SEM) of subjects reported to suffer from sleep disturbances every night. About 3 out of 4 (74.2 +/- 2.0 %) considered their disorder as mild and were not very concerned about it. Only 31 +/- 2 % of sufferers reported to have sought for medical help. Although 45 +/- 2 % of sufferers reported frequent daily sleepiness, trouble to remember things, irritability and headaches, they did not seek for medical assistance. Among those patients who saw a physician with complaints different from sleep difficulties only 1 out of 3 (33 +/- 2 % of patients) were asked about quality of their sleep by the incumbent practitioner. Strategies of patients to cope with sleep problems included specific behaviors (taking a warm bath, reading or watching TV) (44 +/- 1.6 %), taking herbal beverages (17 +/- 1.2 %) or taking sleeping pills (10 +/- 1.1 %). Benzodiazepines were consumed by 3 +/- 0.6 % of sufferers. CONCLUSION: Public educational campaigns on the consequences of sleep disorders and an adequate training of physicians in sleep medicine are needed to educate both the public and the general practitioners about sleep disorders.

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  • The prevalence of sleep disruption observed in medical students is higher than in the general population.

    “The prevalence herein observed is higher than in the general population, which was 16.6% in Asia and Africa prevalence, 62 20% in Canada and the US, 63,64 22.7% in Latin America, 65 23% in Japan, and 31% in Western Europe.66”

    From Sleep disruption in medicine students and its relationship with impaired academic performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (2020) · cites this paper as [65]

    The Background (page unavailable) reports that sleep disturbances affect 25–45% of outpatients visiting primary care centers, but does not give the cited 22.7% prevalence for the Latin American general population. The Methods (page unavailable) say the survey selected fixed numbers of sufferers and non-sufferers, so its sample cannot establish that prevalence. The comparison with medical students is the citing authors’ framing, not a finding attributed to this source. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Haponik EF Sleep disturbances of older persons: physicians' attitudes Sleep 1992 15 168 172 1579792
  2. Haponik EF Frye AW Richards B Wymer A Hinds A Pearce K McCall V Konen J Sleep history is neglected diagnostic information. Challenges for primary care physicians J Gen Intern Med 1996 11 759 761 9016425
  3. Stoppe G Sandholzer H Staedt J Kiefer J Winter S Ruther E [Ambulatory treatment of sleep disorders in the aged] Dtsch Med Wochenschr 1994 119 1538 1542 7956788

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Authors
Blanco, M., Kriguer, N., Lloret, S. P., & Cardinali, D. P.
Affiliations
  • Hospital César Milstein (AR)
  • Universidad de Buenos Aires (AR)
Corresponding author
Cardinali, Daniel P
ORCID
Cardinali, Daniel P
Venue
BMC Family Practice
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2003-11-20
Volume
4
Issue
1
Pages
17-17
ISSN
1471-2296 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/1471-2296-4-17
PMC
PMC280681
OpenAlex
W1579490525
Cited by
19
References
51
Citations by year
2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 1 · 2014: 2 · 2013: 1
FWCI
0.47
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (unspecified)
Locations
  • BMC Family Practice (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, other-oa)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Greater South Information System
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Obstructive Sleep Apnea Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
Keywords
sleep disorders, help-seeking, patient attitudes, underdiagnosis, general practitioners, coping strategies, benzodiazepines, herbal medicine, sleep medicine training, public health education, Latin America
MeSH terms
Argentina, Attitude to Health, Brazil, Health Surveys, Humans, Mexico, Sleep Wake Disorders, Urban Population

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