Abstract
Background: Despite overwhelming evidence for gender differences in sleep quality as well as gender-specific changes of sleep parameters with respect to habitual sleeping arrangements, studies on snorers and their bed partners have ignored the influence of individual quality of sleep as a potential co-factor. Objective: The objective of this study was to record subjective and objective sleep parameters and to analyze the effects of alternating of sleeping arrangements in snorers and their bed partners. Methods: Habitual snorers and their bed partners were recruited via newspaper articles not stating the exact purpose of the study. Both filled out a 90-day sleep diary. During this time, we recorded subjective and objective sleep parameters in the snorers and their bed partners via wrist actigraphy and sleep diaries for 14 days. For statistical analysis, we used two-sided t-tests and Spearman’s Rho. Results: The dataset included 45 snorers (11 females) and 45 bed partners (34 females) with a mean age of 47 ± 13 and 43 ± 12 years. Screening for sleep apnea yielded snoring without OSAS, mild-, moderate- and severe OSAS in 27 (60%), eight (18%), three (7%) and six (15%) snorers. PSQI total scores were significantly lower in snorers than in bed partners (4 ± 2 vs. 6 ± 4, p = 0.002). We could not find a significant correlation between subjective and objective sleep latency and efficiency. Couples who changed their sleeping arrangement were significantly younger than those who habitually slept alone or together (p = 0.01). Subjective sleep parameters of snorers or bed partners were not related to the number of consecutive nights spent either together or apart. Conclusions: Our study confirmed the weak correlation of subjective and objective sleep parameters in pairs with snoring problems. Couples changing their sleeping arrangement were the youngest among the whole group, but their separation of sleeping arrangements did not improve subjective sleep parameters.
Highlights
Pair sleep is common among adults and a recent survey in the United States showed that 61% of the respondents shared the bed with a partner
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) total scores were significantly lower in snorers than in bed partners (4 ± 2 vs. 6 ± 4, p = 0.002) whereas Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), and Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) total scores did not differ significantly between bed partners and snorers (ESS: 9 ± 4 vs. 7 ± 4, p = 0.2; SDS: 35 ± 10 vs. 35 ± 9, p = 0.4; SAS: 33 ± 10 vs. 36 ± 9, p = 0.9)
Apnea screening yielded snoring without, mild, moderate- and severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) in 27 (60%), eight (18%), three (7%) and six (15%) patients
Summary
Pair sleep is common among adults and a recent survey in the United States showed that 61% of the respondents shared the bed with a partner. It is surprising, that given the dyadic nature of sleep for the majority of adults, a literature search from 1960 onwards only yielded five studies that had investigated the impact of different sleeping arrangements on sleep parameters [1]. Methods: Habitual snorers and their bed partners were recruited via newspaper articles not stating the exact purpose of the study. Both filled out a 90-day sleep diary.
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