Professional correlates of insomnia.
OBJECTIVE
Insomnia is a highly prevalent disorder that affects daytime functioning, behavior, and quality of life. Several reports have shown that insomnia impacts on the workforce and is associated with an increased risk of absenteeism. However, few workplace studies have been performed. Our study attempted to evaluate the professional correlates of insomnia by comparing a group of workers with insomnia to a matched group of good sleepers. The main objective measure was absenteeism. Accidents, self-esteem at work, job satisfaction, and efficiency at work were also investigated.


METHODS
Pairs of workers with insomnia (according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition definition) and good sleepers, matched by age, sex, and occupational status, were interviewed by their occupational physician and also answered a self-administered questionnaire on work-related criteria. Objective data on absenteeism (number of days absent from work) were provided by the employers' health resource databases.


METHODS
Paris and the Ile de France region (France).


RESULTS
Seven hundred eighty-five subjects completed the questionnaire. We retained 369 pair (ie, 738 subjects) for analysis. Insomniacs missed work twice as often as good sleepers. The difference between insomniacs and good sleepers in terms of absenteeism was particularly high for blue-collar workers (odds ratio = 3.0) and men (odds ratio = 2.31). Insomniacs had also a higher accident rate while driving and, strikingly, a 3-fold greater risk of having 2 or 3 serious road accidents. They also reported poor self-esteem at work, less job satisfaction, and less efficiency at work, compared with good sleepers.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study found an objective increase in absenteeism in insomniacs compared with good sleepers.
Centre du Sommeil, Hôtel-Dieu Hospital, Paris, France. damien.leger@htd.ap-hop-paris.fr
Damien
D
Léger
Marie-Anne
MA
Massuel
Arnaud
A
Metlaine
D000041:Absenteeism; D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016272:Occupational Health; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D007319:Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires