Original Research Article
Year: 2017 | Month: June | Volume: 7 | Issue: 6 | Pages: 102-107
Sleep Quality and Erectile Dysfunction in Depressed Male Subjects in Nigeria
Celestine O. Mume
Department of Mental Health, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile – Ife, Osun State, Nigeria
ABSTRACT
Background and objectives: There exists a relationship between sleep quality and depressive illness, just as certain studies have established a relationship between depressive illness and erectile dysfunction. The objectives of this study were to determine sleep quality and erectile dysfunction in a group of depressed patients and to seek a possible inter relationship among sleep quality, erectile dysfunction and depressive illness in the Nigerian environment.
Materials and methods: Twenty – five consecutive depressed male patients were evaluated for sleep quality and erectile dysfunction. The diagnosis of depressive illness was made using the criteria from the 10th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD - 10) by the World Health Organization (WHO). The severity of the depression was rated using the 17 – item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HamD). The sleep quality was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) while erectile dysfunction was assessed using The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) Questionnaire.
Results: Of the twenty – five subjects, 22 (88.0%) provided complete data. The mean age of the subjects was 39.6 years (SD = 6.2) with a range of 29 – 51 years. Eighteen out of the 22 subjects (81.8 %) were poor sleepers having scored above 5 on the PSQI while 13 of the subjects (59 %) had erectile dysfunction having scored below 22 on the
The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) Questionnaire. There was a significant association between sleep quality and severity of depression (r = 0.73, p = 0.00). This study did not find a significant association between sleep quality and erectile dysfunction; neither was the study able to establish an association between erectile dysfunction and severity of depression. As predictors, sleep quality and erectile dysfunction accounted for 48 % of the variance in the scores of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale
Conclusion: This study showed that most depressed patients in the studied group were poor sleepers and that erectile dysfunction was highly prevalent in them. In the management of depressed patients, while attention must be paid towards improving the sleep quality of the patients, the clinician should also not fail to be mindful of the high risk of erectile dysfunction which may or may not require treatment in its own right.
Key words: Sleep quality, insomnia, sleep disorder, erectile dysfunction, depression, Nigeria