Sleep disorder diagnoses and clinical outcomes among hospitalized breast cancer patients: a nationwide inpatient sample study

Sleep disturbances are recognized as a problem for many cancer patients, but little is known about the prevalence of sleep disorders among women hospitalized with breast cancer, or their relationship to in-hospital outcomes. The present study represents a first step toward determining the clinical significance of sleep disorders for hospitalized breast cancer patients with regard to complications, length of hospital stay, and mortality. The relationships between sleep disorders and in-hospital outcomes among 84,424 hospitalized breast cancer patients were examined. This study analyzed the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database (2007 to 2011) for all women ages 40 years and older with a primary discharge diagnosis of breast cancer and a secondary discharge diagnosis of sleep disorder. Odds ratios, estimates, and 95% confidence intervals were computed using multivariable regression adjusting for age, comorbidities, race, cancer stage, income, insurance type, residential region, year of discharge, and surgical treatment type. Among women hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of breast cancer, 2% (n = 1807) also received a diagnosis of a sleep disorder during hospitalization, the majority of which were sleep-related breathing disorders (n = 1274). Although there was no significant association between having a diagnosis of a sleep disorder and in-hospital mortality, patients with a sleep disorder were more likely to also experience complications (OR = 1.58, 95% CI 1.29-1.34) and have longer hospital stays (mean = 0.44 days longer, 95% CI 0.25-0.63). Hospitalized breast cancer patients with a sleep disorder were more likely to experience clinical complications and stay longer in the hospital. It remains an open and important question for future research whether interventions to improve sleep during hospitalization would help to improve clinical outcomes.