Sleeping pills in the treatment of insomnia in older adults with depression: the role of sleep hygiene

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to determine sleeping pills used for insomnia and investigate the im- pact of sleep hygiene on insomnia severity in older adults with depression. Methods: In this study, 120 older adults with depression taking sleeping pills for insomnia were included. We evaluated sleep hygiene, sleep quality, insomnia severity, depression, and anxiety using the Sleep Hygiene Index, Insomnia Severity Index, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality In- dex, Beck Depression Inventory, and Beck Anxiety Inventory and determined the sleeping pills used for insomnia. Results: Quetiapine, mirtazapine, and trazodone were the most commonly used sleeping pills. Sleep hygiene was correlated with insomnia overall and was elevated in the group with higher clinical levels of insomnia. In multiple linear regression analyzes, insomnia was predict- ed by subjective sleep quality (20%) and sleep hygiene (9%) and sleep hygiene (4%) when depression and anxiety were adjusted. Conclusion: Although the sleeping pills used are similar, the differentiation of insomnia sever- ity in terms of sleep hygiene shows the importance of the latter in the treatment process. Lon- gitudinal studies investigating the effect of simple environmental and behavioral influences on insomnia symptoms are needed.