Unclear Insomnia Concept in Randomized Controlled Trials and Systematic Reviews: A Meta-Epidemiological Study

Masahiro Banno; Yasushi Tsujimoto; Kunihiro Kohmura; Eisuke Dohi; Shunsuke Taito; Hidehiro Someko; Yuki Kataoka

doi:10.3390/ijerph191912261

Unclear Insomnia Concept in Randomized Controlled Trials and Systematic Reviews: A Meta-Epidemiological Study

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Sep 27;19(19):12261. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191912261.

Authors

Masahiro Banno^{1

2

3}, Yasushi Tsujimoto^{3

4

5}, Kunihiro Kohmura¹, Eisuke Dohi⁶, Shunsuke Taito^{3

7}, Hidehiro Someko^{3

8}, Yuki Kataoka^{3

9

10

11}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry, Seichiryo Hospital, Tsurumai 4-16-27, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-0064, Japan.
² Department of Psychiatry, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Tsurumai-cho 65, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-8560, Japan.
³ Scientific Research WorkS Peer Support Group (SRWS-PSG), Koraibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0043, Japan.
⁴ Department of Health Promotion and Human Behavior, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine/School of Public Health, Kyoto University, Yoshida Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
⁵ Oku Medical Clinic, Shimmori 7-1-4, Asahi-ku, Osaka 535-0022, Japan.
⁶ Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Ogawahigashi-cho 4-1-1, Kodaira 187-8502, Japan.
⁷ Division of Rehabilitation, Department of Clinical Practice and Support, Hiroshima University Hospital, 1-2-3, Kasumi, Minami-ku, Hiroshima 734-8551, Japan.
⁸ Department of General Internal Medicine, Asahi General Hospital, I 1326, Asahi 289-2511, Japan.
⁹ Department of Internal Medicine, Kyoto Min-iren Asukai Hospital, Tanakaasukaicyo 89, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8226, Japan.
¹⁰ Section of Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Community Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Shogoin Kawara-cho 54, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
¹¹ Department of Healthcare Epidemiology, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine/School of Public Health, Yoshida Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.

Abstract

There are two possible ways to conceptualize the term "insomnia": insomnia disorder and insomnia symptoms, which are often poorly reported. The purpose of this study was to examine the proportion of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews (SRs) that mention insomnia in their abstracts and cannot distinguish between insomnia disorder and insomnia symptoms from the abstract. We included RCT and SR articles that included the word "insomnia" in the methods or results sections of their structured abstracts, published after 2010. We searched PubMed using English language restrictions on 10 March 2022. From 1580 PubMed articles, we obtained 100 random samples each for eligible RCTs and SRs. The unclear insomnia concept accounted for 88% of the RCT abstracts and 94% of the SR abstracts. Among the RCT and SR abstracts with unclearness, the concept of insomnia was unclear in 27% of RCTs and 57% of SRs after investigating the full text. The concept of insomnia has been unclear in many RCTs and SRs abstracts. The authors of RCTs and SRs are recommended to state "insomnia disorder" or "insomnia symptoms" in the methods and results sections of their abstracts.

Keywords: insomnia; meta-epidemiological study; randomized controlled trials; systematic reviews.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Epidemiologic Studies
Humans
Publications
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
Research Design
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders* / epidemiology
Systematic Reviews as Topic

Grants and funding

This English editing fee was supported by the Scientific Research Works Peer Support Group (not-for-profit organization). The address of the funder was “Koraibashi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0043”. The funding number did not exist. The funders played no role in the design of the study; collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; or in writing the manuscript.