Frequency of Sleep Disorders in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

Background: The quality of life of people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic inflammatory illness, is greatly impacted by sleep disturbances that are often experienced in conjunction with the condition. Objective: The purpose of this research was to ascertain the prevalence of sleep problems in RA patients as well as their relationship to patient demographics and disease severity. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to December 2023. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) were used to evaluate sleep disturbances and structured questionnaires were used to gather data. Demographic characteristics and the severity of the RA condition were also assessed. using a significance threshold set at p<0.05, Chi-square tests were used to evaluate the relationship between sleep problems and the severity of RA illness in the statistical studies carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, version 26 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Results: A total of 385 RA patients were included in the study. Among them, 38.96% (n=150) reported insomnia, 18.18% (n=70) suffered from sleep apnea, and 15.58% (n=60) experienced restless legs syndrome. Poor sleep quality was prevalent in 75.32% (n=290) of participants, as assessed by the PSQI. Notably, a significant association was found between insomnia and moderate disease activity (n=55; p<0.001), while sleep apnea was most frequently observed in patients with low disease activity (n=27; p=0.003). Additionally, restless legs syndrome was predominantly seen in those with moderate disease activity (n=26; p=0.002), highlighting the complex relationship between RA severity and sleep disturbances. Conclusion: The high prevalence of sleep disorders in RA patients, particularly insomnia and sleep apnea, is significantly associated with disease severity, highlighting the need for targeted management strategies.