Sleep disturbances and intrinsic capacity trajectories among Chinese older adults: The Rugao Longevity and Ageing Study

Age related decline of intrinsic capacity (IC) is the core of the functional ability and risk factor of adverse outcomes such as disability, hospitalization, and mortality. However, the relationship between sleep disturbance and IC decline are largely unknown. We conducted a longitudinal study and used data of 1514 community elders from the aging arm of the Rugao Longevity and Ageing Study. We found that poor sleep quality is cross-sectional associated with an increased risk of lower IC. In longitudinal analysis, sleep disturbances were inversely associated with composite IC score changes after adjusting for confounders (PSQI>5 vs. PSQI≤5: mean difference [-0.23], P = 0.0005), suggesting that poor sleep quality was associated with a decline in IC during the follow-up period. In conclusion, sleep disturbances were associated with worse IC changes. The results suggest that improving sleep health may help prevent IC decline and hence decreasing the burden of geriatric nursing practice.