Introduction:

Sleep quality is commonly impaired in medical disorders, and the HIV-positive population is particularly vulnerable to complaint from sleep disturbances.

Objective:

To determine the prevalence of poor sleep quality and the factors associated with it, in a population of HIV positive Mexican out patients.

Method:

A cross sectional study was done. A sample of 367 HIV-positive subjects over 18 years completed a set of self-administered questionnaires: the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, the Athens Insomnia Scale, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Sociodemographic and clinical data were recorded.

Results:

Of the respondents, 82.8% (n = 304) were male. The mean age of the patients was 36.6 (SD = 9.4) years, and the mean educational level was 12.2 (SD = 3.8) years. According to the PSQI, 58.6% (n = 215) had poor sleep quality. Poor sleep quality was more common in those who had lived longer with HIV, had started their antiretroviral treatment later, had suboptimal antiretroviral adherence, had a CD4 cell count <200 cells/µL, reported illicit drug use, had concomitant medications, or had insomnia, sleepiness, or depressive symptoms. In multivariate analyses, poor sleep quality was associated with depressive symptoms, illicit drug use, a CD4 count <200 cells/µL, and time elapsed since HIV diagnosis.

Discussion and conclusion:

Poor sleep quality is common in HIV patients. Early identification of patients with poor sleep quality through vigilance for factors associated with it might facilitate prompt treatment.

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