Sleep patterns and fatigue in parents of twins.

OBJECTIVE

To examine patterns of postpartum parental sleep and levels of fatigue at 2, 12, and 20 weeks following hospital discharge of newborn twins.

DESIGN

Descriptive longitudinal pilot study.

SETTING

Recruitment from 2 hospital postpartum units. Data collected in parents' homes.

PARTICIPANTS

Eight primiparous parents caring for twins delivered at 33 to 38 weeks gestation.

METHODS

Home visits to deliver and retrieve study equipment: wrist actigraphy and sleep diaries to measure sleep, standardized instrument to measure fatigue, and an investigator-developed form to measure demographics and related variables.

RESULTS

Fathers had significantly less night sleep (5.4 hours) and less 24 hour sleep (5.8 hours) than mothers (6.2 and 6.9 hours, respectively) at 2 weeks after twins were discharged. Sleep efficiency increased significantly over time in a linear fashion for both parents. Morning and evening fatigue levels were not significantly different between parents and remained constant over time.

CONCLUSION

Pilot data suggest that mothers and especially fathers of twins experience sleep disturbances after discharge of their twins. Further study is needed to more fully describe the evolution of sleep patterns and clarify factors that influence sleep in parents of twins.