Qualitative Experience of Sleep in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury.
Donald J Fogelberg, Natalie E Leland, Jeanine Blanchard and 2 others
PMID 28196449WHAT IT FOUND
People with spinal cord injury described poor sleep linked to pain, positioning, pressure-ulcer care, bladder routines, medications, environment and anxiety.
They also connected it to daytime fatigue and missed valued activities.
Key findings
01Sleep-related concerns were common, and the analysis grouped them into disturbed sleep, barriers to good sleep, and effects on daily function.
02Barriers included pain, positioning limits tied to pressure-ulcer care, bowel and bladder routines, medications or substances, and sleep environment or surfaces.
03Poor sleep was connected to daytime fatigue, clouded thinking, missed appointments or obligations, and disengagement from valued roles.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This was a secondary analysis of data collected for a different purpose, and sleep was not asked about directly. The sample was small, purposive and not representative of the general spinal cord injury population. Most participants had serious pressure ulcers, so sleep problems related to positioning and wound care may be more prominent than in other people with spinal cord injury. Because the original data collection had ended, the researchers could not check their interpretations with participants. Participants’ self-reported fatigue may have come from causes other than sleep.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that sleep problems caused these daily-life consequences or that occupational therapy changes will fix them. The data came from a small secondary qualitative analysis, participants were not asked about sleep directly, and no outcomes were tested.