Abstract:
Study Objectives: To determine the prevalence of self-reported circadian-related sleep disorders, sleep medication and melatonin use in the New Zealand blind population. Design: A telephone survey incorporating 62 questions on sleep habits and medication together with validated questionnaires on sleep quality, chronotype and seasonality. Participants: Participants were grouped into: (i) 157 with reduced conscious perception of light (RLP); (ii) 156 visually impaired with no reduction in light perception (LP) matched for age, sex and socioeconomic status, and (iii) 156 matched fully-sighted controls (FS). Sleep Habits and Disturbances: The incidence of sleep disorders, daytime somnolence, insomnia and sleep timing problems was significantly higher in RLP and LP compared to the FS controls (p,0.001). The RLP group had the highest incidence (55%) of sleep timing problems, and 26% showed drifting sleep patterns (vs. 4% FS). Odds ratios for unconventional sleep timing were 2.41 (RLP) and 1.63 (LP) compared to FS controls. For drifting sleep patterns, they were 7.3 (RLP) and 6.0 (LP). Medication Use: Zopiclone was the most frequently prescribed sleep medication. Melatonin was used by only 4% in the RLP group and 2% in the LP group. Conclusions: Extrapolations from the current study suggest that 3,000 blind and visually impaired New Zealanders may suffer from circadian-related sleep problems, and that of these, fewer than 15% have been prescribed melatonin. This may represent a therapeutic gap in the treatment of circadian-related sleep disorders in New Zealand, findings that may generalize to other countries.
