Chronic pain affects sleep of the other half

A study that analysed relationships in which one spouse has chronic knee pain has found that the quality of sleep of the other spouse can be badly affected.

Scientists interviewed 138 people (aged at least 50 years old) with knee osteoarthritis and their spouses and asked them to keep a diary for 22 days.

Results indicated that the worse the knee pain was at the end of the day, the worse quality of sleep their spouse experienced that night. Interestingly, when spouses had a bad night, it didn’t mean the person with osteoarthritis had worse pain the next day.

And in spouses who had a closer relationship, patient pain resulted in “less refreshing sleep for spouses.”

“Compromised sleep caused by exposure to a loved one’s suffering may be one pathway to spousal caregivers’ increased risk for health problems, including cardiovascular disease,” says Dr Lynn Martire who led the work.

“Our findings suggest that assessing the extent to which partners are closely involved in each other’s lives would help to identify spouses who are especially at risk for being affected by patient symptoms and in need of strategies for maintaining their own health and well-being.”