Sleep and frailty syndrome in elderly residents of long-stay institutions: a cross-sectional study.

Aim: Aging changes sleep patterns in most elderly people. Frailty shares a number of characteristics with sleep disorders and leads to similar results. However, their relationship in residents of long-stay institutions remains unclear. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between sleep and frailty syndrome in residents of long-stay institutions.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of 69 institutionalized elderly in the city of João Pessoa, Brazil. The Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index, actimetry and specific tests for frailty phenotype variables were used. Pearson's χ(2)-test, one-way anova and multiple linear regression were applied in statistical analysis.
Results: The sample was characterized as predominantly frail (49.3%), mainly women (62.3%), with a mean age of 77.52 years (± 7.82). Frail elderly exhibited poor sleep quality, when compared with non-frail individuals (P = 0.02). In the multiple linear regression analysis, sleep latency (R(2) = 0.11, P = 0.003) and sleep quality (R(2) = 0.08, P = 0.013) had an influence on frailty, especially sleep quality. No differences were found between rest-activity pattern and frailty phenotype.
Conclusion: Sleep alterations, including poor sleep quality and prolonged latency, were related to frailty in institutionalized elderly.
(© 2013 Japan Geriatrics Society.)