The Associations Between Objectively Measured Gait Speed and Subjective Sleep Quality in First-Year University Students, According to Gender

Mario Kasović; Andro Štefan; Lovro Štefan

doi:10.2147/NSS.S328218

The Associations Between Objectively Measured Gait Speed and Subjective Sleep Quality in First-Year University Students, According to Gender

Nat Sci Sleep. 2021 Sep 24:13:1663-1668. doi: 10.2147/NSS.S328218. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Mario Kasović^{1

2}, Andro Štefan¹, Lovro Štefan^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Kinesiology, Department of General and Applied Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, 10 000, Croatia.
² Faculty of Sports Studies, Department of Sport Motorics and Methodology in Kinanthropology, Masaryk University, Brno, 625 00, Czech Republic.
³ Faculty of Science, Department of Recruitment and Examination (RECETOX), Masaryk University, Brno, 625 00, Czech Republic.

Abstract

Purpose: To examine the associations between gait speed and sleep quality in first-year university students, according to gender.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 193 first-year university students [mean age±standard deviation (SD): 19.6±1.1 years; mean height: 178.0±10.5 cm; mean weight: 74.0±11.0 kg; 26.9% women). Sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality questionnaire, with a lower score indicating "better" sleep quality. Gait speed was measured using the Zebris pressure platform. The associations were examined with generalized linear models and multiple regression analysis.

Results: In the unadjusted model, faster participants had significantly "better" sleep quality (β=-3.15, 95% CI -3.82 to -2.47, p<0.001). When the model was adjusted for sex, age, body-mass index, self-rated health, smoking status, and psychological distress, faster participants remained having "better" sleep quality (β=-2.88, 95% CI -3.53 to -2.22, p<0.001).

Conclusion: This study shows that sleep quality can be predicted by gait speed in the first-year university students.

Keywords: biomechanics; relationship; sleep; youth.

Grants and funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.