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Published on: February 17, 2023
Improving Sleep Health Among Refugees: A Systematic Review
Archit Baskaran1, Emily Marogi1, Ricardo Bitar1
1Department of Neurology (AB), University of Chicago, IL; Department of Internal Medicine (EM), University of California San Francisco, CA; American University of Beirut (RB), Lebanon; Department of Neurology (HA), Northwestern University, Chicago, IL; Department of Neurology (AS), MGH Asylum Clinic, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Purpose Of Review:
Sleep disorders among refugees are common yet understudied. Interventions are difficult in resource-limited settings where most of these populations live. A systematic review of sleep disorders in refugee populations is warranted to identify prevalence, comorbidities, and the limitations of the current state of sleep health among refugees.
Recent Findings:
Sleep disturbances, particularly insomnia and nightmares, occur with a higher prevalence among refugees. Diseases associated with insomnia in this population included fibromyalgia, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. Risk factors include trauma, migration, lower socioeconomic status, lower educational level, and settlement in areas with a high influx of new residents or proximity to conflict. Only a few partially successful therapies were identified.
Summary:
This review identifies the high prevalence of the disturbed sleep in this population and its risk factors. It proposes ways of increasing awareness of it in this vulnerable population as a first step toward remediation.
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