Unraveling the protective effect of weekend catch-up sleep on overactive bladder risk

Weekend catch-up sleep (WCS) has emerged as a new research focus in the field of sleep. Earlier research has shown that sleep and overactive bladder (OAB) are closely related; however, the connection between WCS and OAB has yet to be reported.

Data from the 2017 to 2018 cycle of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database were utilized in this research. The regression analysis was performed by constructing three models with progressively adjusted covariates to assess the association between WCS and the distribution and severity of OAB. A dose-response relationship between WCS duration and OAB risk was further examined by applying restricted cubic splines (RCS) and threshold effect models. Subgroup and interaction analyses were also performed to assess effect stability.

The study involved 4,195 participants, of whom 997 were diagnosed with OAB. Both the distribution and severity of OAB were negatively correlated with WCS, in accordance to the multivariate regression models. RCS model revealed a U-shaped relationship between WCS duration and the distribution of OAB, with an initial decrease followed by an increase. Subsequent threshold effect analysis suggested that the turning point occurred at 1.5 h. Finally, subgroup analyses were conducted, and although interactions were observed, the results remained robust.

WCS may be associated with a reduction in OAB risk and symptom severity. Restricting WCS duration to within 1.5 h may be linked to a lower prevalence of OAB. The simple and feasible approach of moderate WCS holds promise in alleviating the public health burden associated with OAB.