Shift work sleep disorder

Health Effects of Shift Work:
– Shift work is associated with various health risks.
– Sleep disorders contribute to decreased bone mineral density and increased fracture risk.
– Night shift workers have a higher risk of wrist and hip fractures.
– Shift work is linked to low fertility, pregnancy issues, obesity, diabetes, insulin resistance, elevated body fat levels, and dyslipidemias.

Sleep Quality and Alertness:
– Shift work leads to sleep loss and decreased sleep quality.
– The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 7+ hours of sleep per day.
– Sleep deprivation contributes to medical errors and fatal workplace accidents.
– Lack of sleep impairs cognitive performance, reaction times, and alertness levels in shift workers.

Impact on Immune Functioning:
– Partial and total sleep deprivation is linked to an increase in pro-inflammatory markers.
– Chronic shift work is associated with decreased immune function.
– Sleep loss increases the risk of common cold and infectious diseases.
– Poor immune function in shift workers leads to vulnerability to occupational illnesses.

Cardiovascular Disease and Shift Work:
– Lack of sleep is linked to cardiovascular disease.
– Sleep disorders increase levels of CRP, a marker of cardiovascular disease.
– Sleep loss causes an increase in blood pressure due to nervous system stimulation.
– Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Shift Work Sleep Disorder:
– Symptoms of shift work sleep disorder include insomnia and excessive sleepiness.
– Diagnosis criteria involve specific symptoms lasting at least 3 months.
– Tools for assessing shift work disorder include sleep diaries and questionnaires.
– Treatment options include prescribed sleep/wake scheduling, bright light therapy, melatonin treatment, medications for alertness, and medications to promote daytime sleep.

Shift work sleep disorder (Wikipedia)

Shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) is a circadian rhythm sleep disorder characterized by insomnia, excessive sleepiness, or both affecting people whose work hours overlap with the typical sleep period. Insomnia can be the difficulty to fall asleep or to wake up before the individual has slept enough. About 20% of the working population participates in shift work. SWSD commonly goes undiagnosed, so it's estimated that 10–40% of shift workers have SWSD. The excessive sleepiness appears when the individual has to be productive, awake and alert. Both symptoms are predominant in SWSD. There are numerous shift work schedules, and they may be permanent, intermittent, or rotating; consequently, the manifestations of SWSD are quite variable. Most people with different schedules than the ordinary one (from 8 AM to 6 PM) might have these symptoms but the difference is that SWSD is continual, long-term, and starts to interfere with the individual's life.

Shift work sleep disorder
Other names	shift work disorder; SWD
Specialty	Neurology, psychology