[Sleep disturbances complicated by surgical stress; a questionnaire survey of 50 patients]

A questionnaire survey of sleep disturbances was undertaken in 50 adult surgical patients to examine the prevalence of insomnias complicated with surgical stress. The survey about nocturnal sleep conditions was performed for consecutive four nights from two days before surgery. Defining early awakenings, difficulty of initiating or maintaining of sleep as manifestations of insomnias, the incidence of insomnias amounted to 72.9% on the night of two days before surgery, 72.0% on the night before surgery, 86.0% on the night of surgery, and 86.6% on the first night after surgery. High incidence of sleep disturbances complicated with surgical stress is noteworthy in the field of perioperative care.