The indirect impact of chronic insomnia on patients

Module 1
Module 2
Module 3
Module 4
Module 5
Module 6
Back to home

Click here for prescribing information and adverse event reporting information (hosted externally).

Module 1
Module 2
Module 3
Module 4
Module 5
Module 6

The indirect impact of chronic insomnia on patients

Apart from the direct impact chronic insomnia has on patients, its effects are widespread.1

There is a complex, bidirectional and not fully elucidated association between insomnia and other medical and psychiatric disorders.2 Studies have shown that chronic sleep loss contributes to physiological changes that accumulate over time and may result in serious health consequences, increasing the risk of:

Obesity3

Diabetes mellitus4

Coronary heart disease4

Hypertension4
Lowered immunity5
Impaired response to vaccinations5
Alzheimer’s disease/ dementia6
Headache/ migraine7
Anxiety disorders8
Major depression8
Post-traumatic stress disorder8
Bipolar depression8
Substance-use disorders8
Suicide8
COVID-195
Chronic insomnia and cardiovascular risk9

Insomnia and cardiovascular disease (CVD) are both highly prevalent, and are interlinked.9

  • Patients with insomnia have a 45% higher risk of developing CVD
  • Insomnia is a major predictor of poor prognosis in patients with CVD

ACTH: adrenocorticotropic hormone

Emerging research suggests a link between chronic insomnia and cancer outcomes.10 Hear Dr Kathryn Ruddy, Consultant and Professor of Oncology at the Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, speak about the link between breast cancer and insomnia at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2023.

Time to watch: 4 mins 33 secs

Ready for the next step?

Other impacts of chronic insomnia

Continue to next topic
Continue to next topic

CVD: cardiovascular disease

QUVIVIQ™ is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with insomnia characterised by symptoms present for at least 3 months and considerable impact on daytime functioning.17

This information is intended for UK healthcare professionals.

▼This medicine is subject to additional monitoring.

Adverse events must be reported. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in Google Play or Apple App Store. Adverse events should also be reported to ds.safety.uk@idorsia.com

References

  1. Hafner M, Romanelli R J et al. The societal and economic burden of insomnia in adults: an international study. RAND Corporation, 2023
  2. Morin C M, Drake C L et al. Insomnia disorder. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2015;1:15026
  3. Covassin N, Singh P, Somers V K. Keeping up with the clock: circadian disruption and obesity risk. Hypertension 2016;68(5):1081-1090
  4. Itani O, Jike M et al. Short sleep duration and health outcomes: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-regression. Sleep Med 2017;32:246-256
  5. Schmitz N C M, van der Werf Y D, Lammers-van der Holst H M. The importance of sleep and circadian rhythms for vaccination success and susceptibility to viral infections. Clocks Sleep 2022;4(1):66-79
  6. Robbins R, Quan S F et al. Examining sleep deficiency and disturbance and their risk for incident dementia and all-cause mortality in older adults across 5 years in the United States. Aging (Albany NY) 2021;13(3):3254-3268
  7. Fernández-de-Las-Peñas C, Fernández-Muñoz J J et al. Sleep disturbances in tension-type headache and migraine. Ther Adv Neurol Disord 2018;11:1756285617745444
  8. Lim D C, Najafi A et al. The need to promote sleep health in public health agendas across the globe. Lancet Public Health 2023;8(10):e820-e826
  9. Andersen M L, Poyares D, Tufik S. Insomnia and cardiovascular outcomes. Sleep Sci 2021;14(1):1-2
  10. Shi T, Min M et al. Does insomnia predict a high risk of cancer? A systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies. Journal of Sleep Research 2020;29(1):e12876
  11. Ishak W W, Bagot K et al. Quality of life in patients suffering from insomnia. Innov Clin Neurosci 2012;9(10):13-26
  12. Anderson L H, Whitebird R R et al. Healthcare utilization and costs in persons with insomnia in a managed care population. Am J Manag Care 2014;20(5):e157-165
  13. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Clinical knowledge summary. Insomnia. Scenario: managing long-term insomnia (more than 3 months duration), May 2025. Available at: cks.nice.org.uk. Accessed August 2025
  14. Matteson-Rusby S E, Pigeon W R et al. Why treat insomnia? Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry 2010;12(1):PCC.08r00743
  15. Wilson S, Anderson K et al. British Association for Psychopharmacology consensus statement on evidence-based treatment of insomnia, parasomnias and circadian rhythm disorders: an update. J Psychopharmacol 2019;33(8):923-947
  16. Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Safeguarding patient data (2023). Available at: cprd.com. Accessed August 2025
  17. QUVIVIQ™ Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Summary of Product Characteristics
  18. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Technology appraisal guidance 922. Daridorexant for treating long‑term insomnia, 18 October 2023. Available at: nice.org.uk. Accessed August 2025

© NICE 2023 Daridorexant for treating long-term insomnia. Available from www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ta922. All rights reserved. Subject to Notice of rights.

NICE guidance is prepared for the National Health Service in England. All NICE guidance is subject to regular review and may be updated or withdrawn. NICE accepts no responsibility for the use of its content in this product/ publication.

UK-DA-00658 | Date of preparation: September 2025

Copyright © 2026 Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd
Our Services
PI & AE