Sleep habits and sleep complaints in Austria: current self-reported data on sleep behaviour, sleep disturbances and their treatment Introduction Sleep disorders are a very common problem, specifically in the Western industrialized countries. Epidemiological studies demonstrate that the prev- alence of sleep disturbances lies between 20% and 30% and increases with age (1–3). A recent review of the literature covering more than 50 studies of insomnia, based on data collected in various repre- sentative community-dwelling populations, showed that prevalence estimates depend on the definition of insomnia used (4). A longitudinal study demon- strated the lowest mortality hazard for people who reported a mean sleep duration of 7 h per night (5). The present study was performed to acquire current information on sleep habits, sleep distur- bances and treatment options in the adult popula- tion of Austria and to perform a visual comparison of results with previously collected data. Methods In February ⁄ March 2007, interviews, based on a questionnaire concerning sleep disorders were Acta Neurol Scand 2010: 122: 398–403 DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0404.2010.01325.x Copyright Ó 2010 The Authors Journal compilation Ó 2010 Blackwell Munksgaard ACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA Zeitlhofer J, Seidel S, Klo¨sch G, Moser D, Anderer P, Saletu B, Bolitschek J, Popovic R, Lehofer M, Mallin W, Fugger B, Holzinger B, Kerbl R, Saletu A, Machatschke IH, Pavelka R, Ho¨gl B. Sleep habits and sleep complaints in Austria: current self-reported data on sleep behaviour, sleep disturbances and their treatment. Acta Neurol Scand: 2010: 122: 398–403. Ó 2010 The Authors Journal compilation Ó 2010 Blackwell Munksgaard. Objectives – To acquire current information on sleep habits, disturbances and treatment options in the adult population of Austria and compare results with previously collected data. Materials and methods – A representative sample of the Austrian population (women: n = 522, men: n = 478). Results – Seventy-five percent reported daily sleep-duration between 6 and 8 h. In 76%, sleep latency was <30 min, 15% described difficulties in sleep maintenance. Longer sleep on weekends was prevalent in 54%, 23% took a nap. Concerning sleep environment, 31% reported sleeping alone; the rest had a constant or occasional bed partner. Sleep disturbances such as sleep disruption or prolonged sleep latency were reported by 18%. Predominant symptoms included snoring/apneas (22%), nightmares (22%) and restless legs (21%). Daytime tiredness was reported by 17% and sleepiness by 20%. Twenty-four percent did not take treatment. Only 7% asked for medical help: 96% consulted their physician; 47% tried to change their way of living. Sleep promoting drugs were taken by 7%. Sleep improving measures were: sleep promoters (45%), general measures (20%), consultation of general practitioner (20%), psychotherapy (6%), and technical tools (3%). Comparison with a dataset of 1993 revealed only a slight increase in short sleepers and a slight decrease in long sleepers. Conclusions – Subjectively reported sleep disorders proved to be relatively stable between 1993 and 2007. J. Zeitlhofer, S. Seidel, G. Klçsch, D. Moser, P. Anderer, B. Saletu, J. Bolitschek, R. Popovic, M. Lehofer, W. Mallin, B. Fugger, B. Holzinger, R. Kerbl, A. Saletu, I.H. Machatschke, R. Pavelka, B. Hçgl Department of Neurology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria Key words: Austrian population self-reported data; sleep habits; sleep disorders Josef Zeitlhofer, Department of Neurology, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, A-1090 Vienna, Austria Tel.: +43 1 40400 3100 Fax: +43 1 40400 3141 E-mail: josef.zeitlhofer@meduniwien.ac.at Accepted for publication 17 December 2009 398