Gender differences influence over insomnia in Korean population: A cross-sectional study

Study objectives Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder with significant psychiatric/physical comorbidities in the general population. The aim of this study is to investigate whether socioeconomic and demographic factors are associated with gender differences in insomnia and subtypes in Korean population. Method The present study used data from the nationwide, cross-sectional study on sleep among all Koreans aged 19 to 69 years. The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) was used to classify insomnia symptoms and their subtypes (cutoff value: 9.5). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Goldberg Anxiety Scale (GAS) and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) were used to measure sleep quality, anxiety and depression. Results A total of 2695 participants completed the survey. The overall prevalence of insomnia symptoms was 10.7%, including difficulty in initiating sleep (DIS) (6.8%), difficulty in maintaining sleep (DMS) (6.5%) and early morning awakening (EMA) (6.5%), and these symptoms were more prevalent in women than in men. Multivariate analysis showed that female gender, shorter sleep time and psychiatric complications were found to be independent predictors for insomnia symptoms and subtypes. After adjusting for covariates among these factors, female gender remained a significant risk factor for insomnia symptoms and their subtypes. As for men, low income was related to insomnia. Conclusion Approximately one-tenth of the sample from the Korean general population had insomnia symptoms. The prevalence of insomnia symptom and the subtypes were more prevalent in women than men. Gender is an independent factor for insomnia symptoms.