Sleep disturbance is a common and distressing
problem in patients who are terminally
ill.1 Poor sleep affects quality of life and can
increase the intensity of symptoms such as
pain, depression or anxiety.2,3 However both
patients and clinicians often consider insomnia
as an inevitable part of an advanced cancer
diagnosis.4 As a consequence, many patients receive hypnotic medication on a long-term
basis with often unclear benefit and little attention
is paid to the underlying causes of patients’
sleep disturbance.5 At the same time, there is
a paucity of literature regarding prevalence,
causes and management of insomnia in terminally
ill patients.
An audit was carried out aiming to establish
the prevalence, key causes and treatment of
insomnia prior to admission in a population
of hospice patients.