SLEEP PATTERNS IN WOMEN AFTER CORONARY-ARTERY BYPASS-SURGERY

Sleep patterns were examined over a 6-month time period after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) using a wrist-worn actigraph and t he Sleep-Rest subscale of the Sickness Impact Profile. The sample incl uded 22 women during the first postoperative week (T1), and 13 of thes e women during the first posthospitalization week (T2) and the sixth ( T3) and twenty-fourth postoperative weeks (T4). Nighttime sleep became less fragmented and, over time, total sleep became more consolidated during nighttime hours, as shown by significant decreases in day, even ing, and total sleep and increases in the percentage of total sleep oc curring at night during T1. There were also increases in nighttime sle ep and percentages of total sleep and the mean sleep interval and decr eases in day sleep and evening sleep and nighttime awakenings during T 1 through T4. Decreases in the Sleep-Rest subscale indicated perceived improvement in sleep consistent with changes in objective sleep measu res over 6 months. These data can be used to help women anticipate cha nges in sleep patterns over the course of recovery. They suggest the i mportance of interventions to improve sleep during hospitalization and posthospitalization recovery. Copyright (C) 1996 by W.B. Saunders Com pany.