Self-reported sleep duration and hypertension in older Spanish adults

To examine the association between self-reported sleep duration, prevalent and incident hypertension, and control of high blood pressure in older adults.

Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations of interest in a prospective cohort study conducted from 2001 to 2003.

Cohort representative of the noninstitutionalized Spanish population.

Three thousand six hundred eighty-six persons aged 60 and older.

Sleep duration was reported in 2001 by asking the participants "How many hours do you usually sleep per day (day and night)" and classified into categories (4-5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10-15 h/d. The outcome variables were prevalent hypertension (systolic blood pressure > or =140 mmHg, diastolic pressure > or =90 mmHg, or antihypertensive treatment in 2001), control of blood pressure (systolic blood pressure <140 mmHg and diastolic pressure <90 mmHg in subjects receiving antihypertensive treatment in 2001), and incident hypertension (diagnosis of hypertension during 2001-2003 in individuals with normal pressure in 2001).

Compared with sleeping 7 hours, sleeping more or fewer hours was not significantly associated with prevalent hypertension (odds ratios (ORs) ranged from 0.82 (95% confidence interval (CI)=0.64-1.05) to 1.10 (95% CI 0.83-1.46)), control of blood pressure (ORs ranged from 0.70 (95% CI 0.46-1.08) to 0.97 (95% CI 0.60-1.56)), or incident hypertension (OR ranged from 0.54 (95% CI 0.29-1.01) to 0.83 (95% CI 0.43-1.60)). The results were similar in both sexes.

Self-reported sleep duration is not associated with hypertension in older adults.