The prevalence of poor sleepers among postoperative patients was 69.17% (95% CI: 60.58%-76.89%), with poor sleep quality especially prevalent in the first week after surgery and more noticeable among females, middle-aged adults, and married individuals.
The prevalence of poor sleep quality among postoperative patients was 69.17%.
Severe difficulty was most commonly observed in the daytime dysfunction, sleep quality, and sleep latency components of the PSQI.
Poor sleep quality was most prevalent within the first week of the postoperative period.
Among poor sleepers, females, middle-aged adults, and married individuals were the most represented demographic groups.
The study used a descriptive cross-sectional design to assess postoperative sleep quality in a tertiary care hospital setting in Nepal.
This research suggests that poor sleep is extremely common among patients recovering from surgery in a hospital in Nepal. Nearly 70% of postoperative patients in this study were classified as poor sleepers based on a standardized questionnaire called the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The most problematic areas were difficulty functioning during the daytime, overall sleep quality, and how long it took patients to fall asleep. Almost half of all poor sleepers were in their first week after surgery, indicating that this early recovery period is particularly challenging for sleep. The study also found that poor sleep was especially common among women, people in middle age (40–59 years), and married individuals. While the study does not explain why these groups were more affected, these findings point to the importance of paying attention to sleep as part of postoperative care. The research was conducted over a three-month period at a single tertiary care hospital, which may limit how broadly the results can be applied to other settings or populations. This research suggests that healthcare providers caring for surgical patients should be aware that sleep disturbances are very common after operations, particularly in the first week, and may want to consider routine monitoring of sleep quality as part of postoperative recovery care. Addressing factors that disrupt hospital sleep — such as noise, pain, and anxiety — could be an important part of supporting patient recovery.
Mahotra N, Shrestha L, Chaudhary S, Thakurai T, Bhandari T. (2026). Quality of Sleep among the Post Operative Patients at a Tertiary Care Hospital: An Observational Study.. JNMA; journal of the Nepal Medical Association. https://doi.org/10.31729/jnma.9159