The Phenotype of Elderly Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Poor Sleep Quality

Sleep disturbances are a common problem among patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of the study was to identify the phenotype of T2DM patients with poor sleep quality.

An observational, cross-sectional study was conducted between May 2013 and August 2015. One hundred and sixty consecutive patients with T2DM: 74 women and 86 men, with a median age of 69.50 years (59.00; 79.50 years) were enrolled in the study. Sleep quality was evaluated using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire.

Poor sleep quality was noted in 85 (53%) patients. Sleep disorders were associated with older age, as well as female gender, longer duration of diabetes, lower level of fasting plasma glucose, glycated hemoglobin A1c, estimated glomerular filtration rate, triglycerides, waist-to-hip ratio, and the presence of nephropathy. A multivariate logistic regression revealed that sleep disorders were associated with older age (Odd Ratio (OR) = 1.11, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.07-1.15). Fifty-one patients (31.87%) were treated with sleeping pills. We found that older age, female gender, longer duration of diabetes, lower level of fasting plasma glucose, glycated hemoglobin A1c, estimated glomerular filtration rate, triglycerides, and the presence of nephropathy were linked with more frequent usage of hypnotics. A multivariate logistic regression demonstrated that older age (OR = 1.09, 95% CI 1.05-1.14) and nephropathy (OR = 2.79, 95% CI 1.24-6.28) were associated with a more frequent receiving the hypnotics, whereas male gender (OR = 0.30, 95% CI 0.13-0.71) has less frequent hypnotics usage.

Although, we assessed a wide range of patients' characteristics, age had the most negative impact on the quality of sleep in patients with T2DM. We detected more frequent use of hypnotics in older females, with coexisting nephropathy.