0922 Associations Between Sleep Disturbances and PTSD Symptoms in Young Adults

Abstract Introduction Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and sleep are bi-directionally linked. Past research on the association between sleep and PTSD has largely focussed on older military populations aged 30 or above, which created a gap in understanding this relationship in younger civilian populations. In addition, individual and trauma-related factors in this demographic have been mostly overlooked. In this study, we addressed this gap by examining the association between sleep disruptions and PTSD symptoms in a young university student cohort with diverse, non-military trauma histories. In addition, we explored moderating factors such as biological sex, chronotype, and trauma chronicity and investigated the link between sleep disturbances and PTSD symptom clusters (re-experiencing, hyperarousal, avoidance, and negative mood). Methods A total of 634 university students (female: 491, male: 143) with a mean age of 19.83 years (SD = 4.71) completed the study. Among them, 283 students reported experiencing at least one traumatic event. Participants completed an online questionnaire to assess trauma history, PTSD symptom severity, sleep disturbances (sleep quality, insomnia, and sleepiness), chronotype, and levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms. Results There was a significant positive association between sleep disturbances and PTSD symptom severity, F(3, 279) = 48.68, p < .001, R2 = .34 in trauma-exposed adults with and without likely PTSD. However, this relationship was not moderated by any of the hypothesised factors (p >.05). Nonetheless, there was a significant positive relationship between sleep disturbances and all four PTSD symptom cluster: re-experiencing (b =0.32, p <.001), hyperarousal (b =0.34, p <.001), avoidance (b =0.53, p <.001), and negative mood (b =0.24, p <.001). Conclusion The association between sleep and PTSD in this young adult population with mixed-trauma exposures aligned with the previously observed findings in older military veterans. The increasing severity of sleep disturbances as a predictor for PTSD symptom severity further suggests that sleep is a potential etiological factor contributing to the onset and persistence of PTSD. These results bear significant treatment implications, emphasizing the potential to address sleep-related issues in interventions targeting PTSD. Support (if any)