Sleep Disturbances in Seniors with Parkinson's Disease

Introduction:The prevalence of sleep disturbances in patients with Parkinson's disease is very high. It is one of the factors that significantly affects the health care, nursing care and also quality of life of patients and their family members. Design: For the purpose of the research, design of a prospective quantitative study was chosen based on an assessment scale. Aim: The research aim was to map out the prevalence of sleep disturbances in patients with Parkinson's disease and to find out the influence of sex (gernder) and stage of the disease on the sleep disturbances prevalence. Methods: We used the Parkinson's Disease Sleep Scale PDSS-2 to assess the symptoms of sleep disturbances. We statistically computed the results using the chi-square test and Mann- Whitney U test. The research sample consisted of 220 respondents diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, who were included in the sample on the basis of deliberate selection. Results: Out of the total respondents, 115 (523%) show mildly severe sleep disorder according to the score of the sleep scale from 0 to 20; 67 (30.5%) respondents show moderate sleep disorder; 38 (17.3%) show severe sleep disorder according to the score of the sleep scale from 21 to 40. The median score was higher in women (203) compared to men (19) with no statistical significance (p=0.646). When comparing sleep disturbances by the stage of the disease, the median score was 103 at an early stage while 10.0 at advance stage, this difference was not significant (p value= 0.477). Conclusion: The issue of the sleep disorders prevalence in patients with Parkinson's disease is highly urgent. In conclusion, we can state that neither sex (gender) nor the stage of the disease has a clear effect on the manifestations of sleep disturbances in patients with Parkinson's disease.