The 80:20 Rule
Veteran Suicide Due to Sleep Disturbance
Grant Wright
ITT Technical Institute
Abstract
This article reviewed the role of sleep disturbance in time to suicide since the last treatment visit among veterans receiving Veterans Health Administration services. Among 423 veteran suicide decedents from two geographic areas, veteran suicides with a documented sleep disturbance were compared with those without sleep disturbance on time to death since their last VHA visit using an accelerated failure time model. The results were that veterans with sleep disturbance died sooner after their last visit than did those without sleep disturbance, after we adjusted for the presence of mental health or substance use symptoms, age, and region.
Veteran Suicide Due to Sleep Disturbance
In a study of military veterans who died by suicide, those with reported sleep disturbances died more proximately to their last visit to Veteran Health Services than those without insomnia.
Until recent years, empirical data were almost entirely based on studies of suicidal ideation and nonlethal suicide attempts, with unclear generalization to suicide deaths. We are aware of no other published empirical studies of sleep disturbance and suicide in a veteran population. VHA is the largest integrated health care system in the United States. (Pigeon, Britton, Ligen, Chapman, & Connor 2010)
Veterans who receive VHA care are at increased risk for suicide compared with the US general population. More than 1800 VHA users die by suicide each year, representing at least 5% of suicides in the United States annually. Accordingly, suicide prevention among veterans is both a national and VHA priority. (Kohyama 2010)
Sleep disturbances are prevalent in military returnees from Iraq and Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress disorder or with mild traumatic brain injury. Moreover, VHA users have high rates of sleep disturbance overall, compelling the study of sleep disturbance and suicide
Grant Wright
ITT Technical Institute
Abstract
This article reviewed the role of sleep disturbance in time to suicide since the last treatment visit among veterans receiving Veterans Health Administration services. Among 423 veteran suicide decedents from two geographic areas, veteran suicides with a documented sleep disturbance were compared with those without sleep disturbance on time to death since their last VHA visit using an accelerated failure time model. The results were that veterans with sleep disturbance died sooner after their last visit than did those without sleep disturbance, after we adjusted for the presence of mental health or substance use symptoms, age, and region.
Veteran Suicide Due to Sleep Disturbance
In a study of military veterans who died by suicide, those with reported sleep disturbances died more proximately to their last visit to Veteran Health Services than those without insomnia.
Until recent years, empirical data were almost entirely based on studies of suicidal ideation and nonlethal suicide attempts, with unclear generalization to suicide deaths. We are aware of no other published empirical studies of sleep disturbance and suicide in a veteran population. VHA is the largest integrated health care system in the United States. (Pigeon, Britton, Ligen, Chapman, & Connor 2010)
Veterans who receive VHA care are at increased risk for suicide compared with the US general population. More than 1800 VHA users die by suicide each year, representing at least 5% of suicides in the United States annually. Accordingly, suicide prevention among veterans is both a national and VHA priority. (Kohyama 2010)
Sleep disturbances are prevalent in military returnees from Iraq and Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress disorder or with mild traumatic brain injury. Moreover, VHA users have high rates of sleep disturbance overall, compelling the study of sleep disturbance and suicide
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