Sleep quality affects health-related quality of life in young athletes during competition

Cross-sectional, analytical study that examined the link between sleep quality (SQ) and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in young athletes in a sports competition. SQ was measured through the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and HRQOL through the SF36 v2 (SF36v2) short-form health survey in 71 young athletes (39 men; mean age 16.9, SD = 1.2 years; mean 6.5, SD = 3.2 years in sports and mean 10.8, SD = 3.3 hours of weekly training) on the day prior to a competition. When comparing the athletes according to SQ (poor SQ > 5 PSQI), significant differences were found (p < .05) in HRQOL in the domains bodily pain, general health, vitality, social function, emotional role and mental health, but not in the domains bodily function and physical role. Our results suggest poor SQ is associated with a worse perception of HRQOL in young athletes in competition. Key words: Sleep hygiene, mental health, quality of life, athletes, youth sports.