LAUSR

Sleep can significantly modulate the immune response to infectious agents. In the current study, changes in sleep quality during COVID-19-induced confinement among adults were investigated. This was a cross-sectional survey study of the public using social media. Participants (n=1846) were recruited in the study, of which >92% reported a variety of confinement procedures such as self-quarantine, physical distancing, banning of public events, school closure, and lockdown. Majority of the participants (53-59%) reported an increase in most of the sleep parameters except a decrease (49.1%) in daytime sleep. Age was associated with changes in sleeping disturbances during COVID-19 confinement (p<0.001). Young participants were more likely to experience sleeping disturbance than older ones (p<0.05). In addition, gender (p<0.001) is an independent predictor of nighttime sleeping. Being a male is associated with a “decrease” and being a female is associated with an “increase” in nighttime sleeping hours (p<0.05). Moreover, change in daytime sleeping was related to age, gender, and job type (p<0.05). In conclusion, changes in sleep quality during COVID-19-induced confinement were reported. Intervention programs and strategies are warranted to further improve sleep during the current and future disease-induced confinement.