OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between stressful life events (SLE) and insomnia complaints (IC). METHODS: Cross-sectional data from 695 certified nursing assistants from a university hospital, participants of the Pro-Saude Study - a cohort of university employees in Rio de Janeiro, were analyzed. Information was obtained through a self-administered multidimensional questionnaire, which evaluated the occurrence of SLE in the previous 12 months, socioeconomic and demographic variables, and IC. Insomnia complaints were analyzed as a polythomic outcome (frequent, occasional, and absent). Crude and adjusted odds ratios were calculated through multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS: Total prevalence of IC was 45.8% (frequent 16.7% and occasional 29.1%). After adjusting for sex, age, marital status, per capita family income, and work hours, the SLE associated with frequent IC were: "breakup of a love relationship" (OR = 3.32; 95%CI 1.90-5.78), "having had severe health problems" (OR=2.82; 95%CI 1.73-4.58), "severe financial problems" (OR=2.38; 95%CI 1.46-3.88), and "forced change of residence" (OR=1.97; 95%CI 1.02-3.79). Occasional IC was associated only with "breakup of a love relationship" (OR=2.30; 95%CI 1.42-3.74) and "severe financial problems" (OR=1.87; 95%CI 1.27-2.75). CONCLUSIONS: Given the responsibility over human lives taken on by nursing assistants during their work hours, our findings may contribute to more effective actions to be taken by health services toward workers in this category, helping them better deal with stress.
Insomnia; Sleep; Insomnia Complaints; Stressful Life Events; Occupational Health; Nursing Assistants; Epidemiology
