Abstract MP42: Insomnia Symptoms Are Associated With Poor Cardiometabolic Health Among Bhutanese Refugees in the United States

Abstract

Introduction: The prevalence of insomnia symptoms is higher among refugees globally compared to the general population, and poor sleep is a risk factor for poor cardiometabolic health. The resettled Bhutanese refugee community is the third-largest refugee group in the United States (US) and appears to be-based on a few existing studies-particularly susceptible to sleep disturbances such as insomnia symptoms as well as cardiometabolic conditions such as hypertension, and type 2 diabetes. No prior studies have investigated associations between insomnia symptoms and cardiometabolic conditions in this community. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that participants reporting insomnia symptoms will have a higher prevalence of cardiometabolic conditions. Methods: We used data from the 2021-2022 Bhutanese Community of Central Ohio Health Study (N=495) to examine associations between insomnia symptoms and cardiometabolic health. Insomnia symptoms, measured by self-reports of difficulty falling/staying asleep, were categorized as “not at all,” “sometimes,” and “often/all the time.” A cardiometabolic condition was based on self-reported medical diagnosis/treatment of one or more of the following conditions: hypertension, dyslipidemia, and type 2 diabetes. Poisson regression with robust variance was used to estimate prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of cardiometabolic conditions among participants with insomnia symptoms compared to participants without insomnia symptoms while adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and body mass index (using criteria for Asians). Results: The sample was mainly aged between 18-44 years (69.8%), 51% were male, and most lived in the US for ≥11 years (60.2%). Insomnia symptoms prevalence was 56.4% for “not at all”, 30.7% for “sometimes,” and 12.9% for “often/all the time.” Overall, 12.9% of participants had at least 1 cardiometabolic condition, 10.8% had at least 2 conditions, and 6.3% had all 3 conditions. Compared to not having insomnia symptoms, having insomnia symptoms sometimes was associated with a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes [PR=2.15, 95%CI: 1.19-3.87], hypertension [PR=1.86, 95%CI: 1.24-2.79], dyslipidemia [PR=1.73, 95%CI: 1.01-2.96], and 1 or more cardiometabolic conditions [PR=1.67, 95%CI: 1.20-2.32]. Similarly, compared to not having insomnia symptoms, having insomnia symptoms often/all the time was associated with a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes [PR=2.18, 95%CI: 1.04-4.54], hypertension [PR=1.71, 95%CI: 1.06-2.74], dyslipidemia [PR=3.03, 95%CI: 1.67-5.47], and 1 or more cardiometabolic conditions [PR=1.68, 95%CI: 1.15-2.47]. Conclusions: In conclusion, the burden of both insomnia symptoms and cardiometabolic health conditions were prevalent among the US Bhutanese refugee population, and the insomnia-cardiometabolic health associations were strong.