Insomnia and common mental disorder among patients with pre-existing chronic non-communicable diseases in southern Ethiopia: a survey during COVID-19 pandemic

Mohammed Ayalew; Bedilu Deribe; Siraj Hussen; Semira Defar; Emnet Tesfaye; Abel Gedefaw

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1142926

Insomnia and common mental disorder among patients with pre-existing chronic non-communicable diseases in southern Ethiopia: a survey during COVID-19 pandemic

Front Psychiatry. 2023 Sep 15:14:1142926. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1142926. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Mohammed Ayalew¹, Bedilu Deribe¹, Siraj Hussen², Semira Defar³, Emnet Tesfaye⁴, Abel Gedefaw⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Nursing, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
² School of Medical Laboratory, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
³ Department of Midwifery, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
⁴ Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
⁵ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.

Abstract

Background: COVID-19 has been causing significant mental health problems and other health-related issues. Despite the fact that COVID-19 has a significant impact on chronic disease patients, there is scant research on insomnia, common mental health disorders (CMD), and their associated factors among chronic disease patients.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of insomnia and common mental disorders (CMD) and their associated factors among patients with pre-existing chronic NCDs in Sidama, southern Ethiopia.

Methods: A multicenter cross-sectional study was undertaken between June 1 and September 1, 2021. The study included 633 participants. CMD and insomnia were assessed using a 20-item Self-Reported Questionnaire (SRQ-20) and a 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) scale, respectively. To describe the various variables, descriptive statistics were used. We performed multivariable logistic regression analysis to identify independent factors associated with CMD and insomnia. A value of p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant at a 95% confidence interval.

Results: The prevalence of insomnia and CMD was found to be 39.3% and 46.8%, respectively. Being merchant (AOR = 0.33; 95% CI = 0.13, 0.82), having a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus (AOR = 1.89; 95% CI = 1.04, 3.46), comorbid diagnosis (AOR = 3.96; 95% CI = 2.27, 6.89), low social support (poor (AOR = 3.37; 95% CI = 1.51, 7.57) and moderate (AOR = 3.13; 95% CI = 1.46, 6.69)), symptoms of insomnia (AOR = 12.08; 95% CI = 7.41, 19.72) and poor quality of life (QOL) (AOR = 1.67; 95% CI = 1.04, 2.72) were independent predictors of CMD. We also found out that, having cardiovascular disorders (CVDs) (AOR = 2.48; 95% CI = 1.18, 5.19), CMD (AOR = 12.09; 95% CI = 7.46, 19.61), and poor QOL (AOR = 2.04; 95% CI = 1.27, 3.26) were significantly associated with insomnia symptoms.

Conclusion: Our study suggests that substantially high prevalence of CMD and insomnia. Significant association between CMD and occupation, diagnosis, comorbidity, social support, insomnia, and QOL were found. We also revealed that having CVDs, CMD, and poor QOL were significantly associated with insomnia symptoms. Therefore, dealing with the mental health problems of patients with chronic NCDs is an essential component of public health intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; Ethiopia; NCDs; common mental disorder; insomnia.