Quality of Sleep among General Governmental Secondary School Students in Abha City, Saudi Arabia

Aim of the study: To investigate sleep quality and its associates among secondary school students in Abha City. Subjects and Methods: A total of 400 secondary school students (200 males and 200 females) in Abha City were included. The Arabic versions of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the Athens Insomnia Scale were applied in addition to the socio-demographic and personal characteristics of the participants. Results: A total of 171 students (42.8%) had poor quality of sleep, while 177 students (44.3%) had insomnia. Prevalence of poor sleep quality was significantly higher among females than males (48% and 37.5%, respectively, p=0.034), and among smokers more than non-smokers (48.8% and 41.3%, respectively, p=0.048), while it did not differ significantly according to students' age, nationality, midterm exam grades, consumption of soft drinks at night, or any of students' family characteristics. Insomnia significantly increased with students' age (p=0.001), while it did not differ significantly according to students' gender, nationality, midterm exam grades, consumption of soft drinks at night, smoking status, or their family characteristics. Conclusions: Poor sleep quality and insomnia are common among secondary school students in Abha City. Females and cigarette smokers are more prone to poor sleep quality. Insomnia among secondary school students is significantly associated with older age. Recommendations: The school health program should apply anti-smoking control and health education programs at schools. Parents and teachers should guide children toward regulating their sleep and wake-up times. Delaying school start times may be proposed as a means of allowing students to get adequate sleep.