Scandinavian journal of primary health care
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Scand J Prim Health Care · Jun 2020
Insomnia in the elderly: reported reasons and their associations with medication in general practice in Denmark.
Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate reasons for insomnia symptoms and their associations with sleep medication prescription in elderly patients in general practice. Design: Over a period of 20 weekdays, general practitioners (GPs) recorded reasons and treatment for insomnia symptoms. Patient characteristics and outcomes were analysed using descriptive statistics. ⋯ Regardless of reason, a majority of the consultations resulted in prescription of sleep medication with potential serious adverse effects. This indicates that there is still room for improving the management of insomnia among older adults. Key PointsAlthough insomnia is common in the elderly, little is known about its reasons and their associations with prescription patterns. The most commonly reported reasons for insomnia symptoms in the elderly are psychiatric diagnosis and somatic illness. According to guidelines, sleep medication with potential serious adverse effects is prescribed too frequently to elderly patients. An effort should be made to identify and optimally treat comorbid insomnia, which appears to be prevalent in older adults.