NIGHTMARES AND SLEEP DISTURBANCE IN SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMEN

A retrospective study was conducted on the charts of 598 women present ing to a rape crisis center. The review assessed nightmare frequency a nd the association between nightmares and disturbed sleep. Of the 598 women, 488 were rape victims (RAPE group = 82%) and 110 women were vic tims of non-rape sexual assault or abuse (NRSAA group = 18%). Raped wo men reported more nightmares than those with NRSAA. Twenty-six percent of women in the RAPE group reported ''a lot'' of nightmares compared to 21% in the NRSAA group (p = .014). Fifty-three percent of women in the RAPE group reported ''some'' nightmares compared to 45% in the NRS AA group (p = .007). Nightmares and changes in sleep habits showed a s trong direct relationship (p = .0001), but were unrelated to RAPE or N RSAA types of assault. The relationship between nightmares, disturbed sleep and post-traumatic stress is discussed.