Relationship between insomnia and quality of life: Mediating effects of psychological and somatic symptomatologies

Abstract

Objectives: We aimed to explore the potential mediating effects of neuroticism, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and somatic symptoms in the relationship between insomnia and health‑related quality of life (HRQoL). Methods: This was a cross-sectional family study, which recruited a total of 297 adolescents (eighty insomniacs as determined by clinical interview) and 318 parents (93 insomniacs). HRQoL was measured by short form‑36 (SF‑36) health survey. A series of questionnaires were employed to measure insomnia severity, neuroticism personality, and depressive, anxiety and somatic symptoms. Results: Participants with insomnia had lower HRQoL than those without insomnia (71.9 vs. 77.1, P < 0.001). Insomnia severity (as measured byInsomnia Severity Index) was significantly associated with HRQoL (correlation coefficient = −0.451, P < 0.001). A total of 53% of the variance of SF‑36 could be explained by the mediation model, which showed that a large proportion of the variances in the association between insomnia severity and HRQoL was mediated by depressive symptoms, somatic symptoms, and neuroticism personality trait. Conclusions: The close associations between insomnia severity and impaired HRQoL are largely mediated by psychological symptomatology and personality dimension. Further prospective study is warranted to investigate the long‑term impact of insomnia symptoms on HRQoL and the roles of mood and somatic symptoms.