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The relationship between pain intensity and insomnia in women with deep endometriosis, a cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Purpose

To investigate the relationship between pain intensity and insomnia frequency in women with a diagnosis of deep endometriosis. The hypothesis is that these patients with moderate or severe pain have a higher frequency of insomnia than those with mild or no pain.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional study of women with deep endometriosis categorized by pelvic pain intensity based on a numerical scale. Insomnia was assessed through a self-reported questionnaire, and multiple logistic regression was used to control for confounders between pain and insomnia.

Results

We included 234 women in the study, 39 (17%) without pelvic pain; 66 (29%) with mild pain; 53 (23%) moderate pain; and 76 (32%) severe pain. Twenty-nine (74%) pain-free women and 50 (75%) with mild pain had no insomnia; only 3 (8%) of the former and 3 (4%) of the latter group had severe insomnia. However, twenty-nine (55%) women with moderate pain and 37 (48%) with severe pain had insomnia. The logistic regression model showed that moderate to severe pain increased insomnia 2.8 times, twice for every 10 years of pain duration, and twice in women with low education levels.

Conclusions

Women with moderate or severe pain had a high frequency of insomnia, increasing management complexity in patients with deep endometriosis. Pain intensity, pain duration, and low education level increased the chance of insomnia in those patients.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to the sigil’s patient information. Still, they are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Gynecology, Ernesto University Hospital, Rio de Janeiro State University, Boulevard Vinte e Oito de Setembro 77 – 5° andar, Vila Isabel, PedroRio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ricardo José de Souza & Marco Aurelio Pinho Oliveira

  2. Department of Pain, Pedro Ernesto University Hospital, Rio de Janeiro State University, Boulevard Vinte e Oito de Setembro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Nivaldo Ribeiro Vilella

Authors
  1. Ricardo José de Souza
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  2. Nivaldo Ribeiro Vilella
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  3. Marco Aurelio Pinho Oliveira
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Contributions

De Souza, R. J.: work design; data collection, analysis, and interpretation; draft, discussion, and review.

Oliveira, M.A.P.: work design; data analysis and interpretation; and review.

Vilella, N. R.: results interpretation; discussion; and review.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ricardo José de Souza.

Ethics declarations

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee (The University of the State of Rio de Janeiro—CAAE: 18261019.4.0000.5259) and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing interests.

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Synopsis

Women with deep endometriosis experiencing moderate or severe pain have a high frequency of insomnia. Low education level and pain duration also play a role in this relationship.

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de Souza, R.J., Vilella, N.R. & Oliveira, M.A.P. The relationship between pain intensity and insomnia in women with deep endometriosis, a cross-sectional study. Sleep Breath 27, 441–447 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-022-02622-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-022-02622-1

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