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Total Hip Replacement Improves Sleep in Arthritis Sufferers

Getting a good night's sleep is important at any age. A restful night goes a long way toward good physical health and mental function. Arthritis pain can rob people of healthy sleep patterns.

This study monitored sleep in patients before and after total hip replacement. As the researchers expected, most of the patients (75 percent) reported much better sleep after the operation.

Sleep was measured using a sleep diary and a motion recorder. Patients wrote in a diary the time they went to bed, times they got up at night, and daytime napping. The motion recorder was worn like a watch. Its software recorded data about movement, time in bed, and actual sleep time.

Both tools were used for five days in the month before the operation, and again three months after the operation. Results after surgery showed that if patients woke up, it was for some other reason than hip pain. The patients and researchers think that relief from arthritis pain is the reason for the improved sleep.

The findings show that sleep improves after a total hip replacement. The patients sleep longer, wake less often, move less during sleep, and wake up refreshed more often. The authors conclude that better sleep after total hip replacement leads to improved day-to-day function and quality of life.

References: Jann M. Fielden, RCpN, MA, et al. An Assessment of Sleep Disturbance in Patients Before and After Total Hip Arthroplasty. In The Journal of Arthroplasty. April 2003. Vol. 18. No. 3. Pp. 371-376.

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