Insomnia in the elderly: reported reasons and their associations with medication in general practice in Denmark.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate reasons for insomnia symptoms and their associations with sleep medication prescription in elderly patients in general practice.Design: Over a period of 20 weekdays, general practitioners (GPs) recorded reasons and treatment for insomnia symptoms. Patient characteristics and outcomes were analysed using descriptive statistics. Logistic regression was used to analyse the associations between reasons for insomnia symptoms and prescription.Setting: General practices in the Region of Southern Denmark.Subjects: Consultations (n = 405) with patients older than 65 years presenting with insomnia symptoms.Main outcome measures: Reasons for insomnia symptoms and sleep medication prescription.Results: The most commonly reported reasons for insomnia symptoms were somatic illness (34%) and psychiatric diagnosis (29%). Having a psychiatric diagnosis or multiple reported reasons for insomnia increased the odds for prescription (odds ratio (OR) 4.60, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.41-9.90 and OR 2.10, CI 1.03-4.28), whereas being first consultation regarding insomnia symptoms decreased the odds (OR 0.17, CI 0.10-0.30). A total of 80% received a prescription, most frequently of Z-hypnotics (49%). About half (52%) of the patients consulting their GP for the first time with insomnia symptoms received a prescription.Conclusion: Somatic and psychiatric diseases were the most commonly reported reasons for insomnia symptoms in the elderly, suggesting a high prevalence of comorbid insomnia. Regardless of reason, a majority of the consultations resulted in prescription of sleep medication with potential serious adverse effects. This indicates that there is still room for improving the management of insomnia among older adults. Key PointsAlthough insomnia is common in the elderly, little is known about its reasons and their associations with prescription patterns. The most commonly reported reasons for insomnia symptoms in the elderly are psychiatric diagnosis and somatic illness. According to guidelines, sleep medication with potential serious adverse effects is prescribed too frequently to elderly patients. An effort should be made to identify and optimally treat comorbid insomnia, which appears to be prevalent in older adults.

Long COVID in the Long Run-23-Month Follow-up Study of Persistent Symptoms.

Symptoms of long coronavirus disease (COVID) were found in 38% of 170 patients followed for a median of 22.6 months. The most prevalent symptoms were fatigue, affected taste and smell, and difficulties remembering and concentrating. Predictors for long COVID were older age and number of symptoms in the acute phase. Long COVID may take many months, maybe years, to resolve.

Prevalence of long COVID in a national cohort: longitudinal measures from disease onset until 8 months' follow-up.

OBJECTIVES: Persistence of COVID-19 symptoms in nonhospitalized individuals beyond a few months has not been well characterized. In this longitudinal study from the Faroe Islands, we present prevalence of long COVID in mainly nonhospitalized patients who were followed up for up to 8 months. METHODS: All Faroese individuals with confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis from August to December 2020 were invited to participate in this study (n = 297). Demographic and clinical characteristics and self-reported symptoms were ascertained prospectively using a detailed questionnaire administered at repeated phone interviews. RESULTS: A total of 226 individuals participated at baseline (226/297, 76% participation rate), of whom 170 participants had more than 3 months follow-up. Of these, 39% (n = 67/170, 95% confidence interval [CI] 32-37%) reported persistent symptoms (median [range] 168 [93-231] days) after the acute phase and 8% (n = 14/170, 95% CI 5-13%) reported severe persistent symptoms. The most prevalent symptoms were fatigue (17%) and smell (17%) and taste (14%) dysfunction. Long COVID was more common in people reporting daily medication use (odds ratio 2.34, 95% CI 1.02-5.37). CONCLUSION: Our results show that symptoms may take months to resolve, even among nonhospitalized individuals, with a mild illness in the acute phase. Continued monitoring for long COVID is needed to evaluate the added risk of a potential public health concern.