The prevalence of restless legs syndrome and its relationship with demographic characteristics and medical disorders in postmenopausal Iranian women

Unraveling sleep quality in menopausal women: objective assessments and self-reported experiences - a mini-review

Sleep is a cornerstone of health, playing an integral role in both physiological and psychological functions. However, it is vulnerable to a variety of factors including menopause. According to available research, the onset of the menopause transition may not necessarily worsen sleep architecture and could even enhance it, leading to conflict between assessment of subjective and objective sleep complaints. This discrepancy highlights the complex relationship between subjective and objective sleep quality. Understanding this relationship remains challenging due to the limited number of longitudinal studies and small sample sizes. This review explores findings from both subjective and objective sleep assessments in menopausal women and examines the impact of menopausal hormone therapy on sleep quality.

Global prevalence of sleep disorders during menopause: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Sleep disorders are conditions that have long-term effects on health, quality of sexual function, productivity at work, and overall quality of life. Considering that reports on menopausal sleep disorders are heterogeneous, the aim of this research was to determine the global prevalence of sleep disorders during menopause by meta-analysis.

METHODS

PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, WoS, ScienceDirect, and Embase databases were checked with suitable keywords. All screening stages of articles were reviewed based on PRISMA and their quality was determined based on STROBE. Data analysis, examination of heterogeneity, and publication bias of factors affecting heterogeneity were performed in CMA software.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of sleep disorders among postmenopausal women was 51.6% (95% CI: 44.6-58.5%). The upper prevalence of sleep disorders was among postmenopausal women at 54.7% (95% CI: 47.2-62.1%). The upper prevalence of sleep disorders in the same population category was related to restless legs syndrome with a prevalence of 63.8% (95% CI: 10.6-96.3%).

CONCLUSION

In this meta-analysis, sleep disorders during menopause were found to be common and significant. Therefore, it is recommended that health policymakers offer pertinent interventions in relation to the health and hygiene of sleep for women in menopause.

Sleep Disturbances and Cognitive Impairment in the Course of Type 2 Diabetes-A Possible Link

There is an increasing number of patients worldwide with sleep disturbances and diabetes. Various sleep disorders, including long or short sleep duration and poor sleep quality of numerous causes, may increase the risk of diabetes. Some symptoms of diabetes, such as painful peripheral neuropathy and nocturia, or associated other sleep disorders, such as sleep breathing disorders or sleep movement disorders, may influence sleep quality and quantity. Both sleep disorders and diabetes may lead to cognitive impairment. The risk of development of cognitive impairment in diabetic patients may be related to vascular and non-vascular and other factors, such as hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, central insulin resistance, amyloid and tau deposits and other causes. Numerous sleep disorders, e.g., sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, insomnia, and poor sleep quality are most likely are also associated with cognitive impairment. Adequate functioning of the system of clearance of the brain from toxic substances, such as amyloid β, i.e. glymphatic system, is related to undisturbed sleep and prevents cognitive impairment. In the case of coexistence, sleep disturbances and diabetes either independently lead to and/or mutually aggravate cognitive impairment.