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65/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 65 out of 100. Risk factors

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

Plain-language summary

No systematic review of epidemiological evidence has examined risk factors for sleep disturbances among older adults. We searched the PubMed database combining search terms targeting the following domains 1) prospective, 2) sleep, and 3) aging, and identified 21 relevant population-based studies with prospective sleep outcome data. Only two studies utilized objective measures of sleep disturbance, while six used the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) and thirteen used insomnia symptoms or other sleep complaints as the outcome measure. Female gender, depressed mood, and physical illness were most consistently identified as risks for future sleep disturbances. Less robust evidence implicated the following as potentially relevant predictors: lower physical activity levels, African-American race, lower economic status, previous manual occupation, widowhood, marital quality, loneliness and perceived stress, preclinical dementia, long-term benzodiazepine and sedative use, low testosterone levels, and inflammatory markers. Chronological age was not identified as a consistent, independent predictor of future sleep disturbances. In conclusion, prospective studies have identified female gender, depressed mood, and physical illness as general risk factors for future sleep disturbances in later life, although specific physiological pathways have not yet been established. Research is needed to determine the precise mechanisms through which these factors influence sleep over time.

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APA 7th

Smagula, S. F., Stone, K. L., Fabio, A., & Cauley, J. A. (2016). Risk factors for sleep disturbances in older adults: Evidence from prospective studies. Sleep medicine reviews. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2015.01.003

Vancouver

Smagula SF, Stone KL, Fabio A, Cauley JA. Risk factors for sleep disturbances in older adults: Evidence from prospective studies. Sleep medicine reviews. 2016. doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2015.01.003. PMID: 26140867.

BibTeX

@article{smagula2016-26140867,
  author  = {Smagula, S. F. and Stone, K. L. and Fabio, A. and Cauley, J. A.},
  title   = {{Risk factors for sleep disturbances in older adults: Evidence from prospective studies}},
  journal = {Sleep medicine reviews},
  year    = {2016},
  doi     = {10.1016/j.smrv.2015.01.003},
  pmid    = {26140867},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2015.01.003}
}

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How to read this study

Design: this is a pooled review. It combines earlier studies, so it is only as good as the studies it pools. Check how many were included, whether they were similar enough to combine, and whether the authors report inconsistency between them.
Size: the record gives no participant count. Look for one in the original before trusting a pattern.
Effect: the record gives no effect size, so the summary above cannot say how large any difference was.

What the evidence grade means here

This page is graded high. alzhub.org assigns the grade automatically from keywords in the abstract, not from reading the paper. High means the abstract mentions a randomized design, a meta-analysis or a systematic review. It can add at most 5 of the 100 points in the study score, and it is a label about design, not a verdict on whether the findings are true.

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Key findings

In conclusion, prospective studies have identified female gender, depressed mood, and physical illness as general risk factors for future sleep disturbances in later life, although specific physiological pathways have not yet been established.

Why it matters

This review of 21 studies found that female gender, depressed mood and physical illness were the most consistent risk factors for future sleep disturbances in older adults. It does not address treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.

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Study details

Study designsystematic review
Evidence strengthHigh

How this study scored 65/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a systematic review of all the studies on the question. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported and studied in people because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Sleep medicine reviews)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	Sleep Medicine Reviews: journal h-index 227 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	12 / 12	A systematic review of all the studies on the question
Strength of evidence	5 / 5	Rated “high” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2016 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	0 / 4	Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	0 / 3	Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Randomized / blinded	0 / 2	A review of other studies — randomization is not credited here
Times cited	6 / 7	Cited 335 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	4 / 5	27.9 citations a year over 12 year(s) since 2016
Impact for its field and year	5 / 6	Cited 33.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	2 / 6	Cited by 4 other studies in this library
Still being cited	3 / 4	Cited 87 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	4 / 4	Last-listed author Jane A. Cauley: h-index 163 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	1 / 3	University of Pittsburgh: institution h-index 1,470 (OpenAlex)
Multicenter collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 26140867)
Free to read	0 / 2	Behind a paywall — scores zero
Total	65 / 100	—

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