Sleep quality in HIV-positive outpatients

Abstract

The objective of this study was to characterize the sleep quality of Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus (HIV) seropositive outpatients with or without AIDS symptoms. This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. Sociodemographic and clinical data were collected by means of a questionnaire, and sleep quality by means of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Brazilian version. Participants were 122 subjects (55.7% male, 44.3% female; mean age 42.3 ± 8.9 years); 53.3% reported good sleep quality and 46.7% reported poor sleep quality. Subjects reported sleeping a mean of 7.3 (± 1.8) hours; sleep latency was 23.2 (± 26.2) minutes, and sleep efficiency, 87.8% (± 14.4). A significant association was found between good sleep quality and: having a partner; undetectable viral load; and maintenance of risk behavior. It is recommended that nursing professionals systematically include questions regarding sleep when evaluating patients with HIV/AIDS, so that changes are detected early and relevant background information is obtained in order to plan interventions.