Elevated prevalence and treatment of sleep disorders from 2011 to 2020; a nationwide population-based retrospective cohort study in Korea

Objectives This study used National Health Insurance claims data from Korea to report the prevalence of sleep disorders and treatment status, including traditional Korean medicine, in the last ten years. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study in Korea. All diagnosis and prescription data, including herbal medicine claims, from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service from 2011 to 2020 were reviewed. Prevalence estimation, direct medical expenses, and prescribed amounts for sleep disorders were recorded. Results The prevalence of sleep disorders increased from 3,867,975 (7.62%) in 2011 to 7,446,846 (14.41%) in 2020, nearly doubling over 10 years. Insomnia was observed in 91.44% (n=9,011,692) of the patients. The mean number of hospital visits per patient for sleep disorders was 11.5 (±26.62). Benzodiazepines are the most commonly prescribed medications for sleep disorders, and gamma-isoyosan is the most frequently prescribed herbal medicine. Conclusions Sleep disorders are continuously increasing, as is the use of medical services – personal and social medical expenses are also increasing accordingly. Sleep disorders should be recognized as a significant health problem that needs to be actively addressed to improve quality of life. Strengths and limitations of this study This is a nationwide health insurance claims data for prevalence and the status of treatment on sleep disorders for ten years. This study will be meaningful because we have confirmed the current address of the prevalence and treatment of sleep disorders in the last 10 years. The data source has the limitation of being able to confirm only the items subject to health insurance benefits and review. The results of tests for the diagnosis of sleep disorders were not confirmed.