Evaluation of sleeping patterns during the pandemic

Background: As the ongoing pandemic has triggered negative psychological effects and these negative effects have a role to play in affecting the quality of sleep, leading to sleep disorders. This demonstrates the need to implement the strategies which would be helpful in preventing and reducing the complications caused due to altered sleeping patterns. Aim and Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate the alteration in the sleep quality during pandemic. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire-based survey scheduled for a month was conducted in the students, office, and health-care workers. Questionnaire was based on Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). This is a self-rated questionnaire which assesses sleep quality and disturbances over a 1-month time interval. The PSQI differentiates “poor” from “good” sleep by measuring seven components: Subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleep medication, and daytime dysfunction over the past 4 weeks. Consent was obtained from all participants and participation was voluntary. Results: There was observed a decline in all the seven components of PSQI score, namely, subjective quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleeping medications, and daytime dysfunction in COVID times as compared to the pre-COVID times. Conclusion: Pandemic has led to the alteration of the sleeping patterns and has led to decline in the sleep quality index.