Introduction

Taxi drivers are a low income population with long work hours, a high-stress sedentary occupation, and varied work shifts, augmenting their risk for sleep disorders. We evaluated sleep quality among New York City (NYC) taxi drivers, a predominantly immigrant/minority population, for associations with sleep outcomes and examined intervention development and policy implications.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey was conducted at driver-frequented locations with 211 consenting NYC taxi drivers and included the 12-item Medical Outcomes Study Sleep Scale and the Perceived Stress Scale-10. For five domains (sleep disturbance, snoring, shortness of breath, sleep adequacy, and somnolence) and Sleep Problems Index-II, self-reported scores were calculated and normed against a nationally representative 2009 US sample to obtain standardized t-test scores. Scores <47 were lower than US averages, indicating worse sleep quality. Results were explored in multivariable linear and logistic regression models.

Results

Almost one-half (47%) of drivers had scores indicating sleep quality below US averages for snoring, 36% for shortness of breath/obstruction, and 19% for somnolence. There were significant associations of perceived stress with Sleep Problems Index II (p < 0.001), sleep disturbance (p < 0.001), somnolence (p < 0.001), and sleep adequacy (p < 0.05). Stress was predictive of sleep adequacy (p < 0.05, bivariate; p < 0.05, multivariate) and shortness of breath/obstruction (p < 0.01, bivariate; p < 0.001, multivariate). Nightshift drivers had significantly worse sleep disturbance scores than dayshift drivers (p < 0.05). Taxi drivers were more likely to get an inadequate amount of daily sleep (<7 h) than the average US male (48.5% vs. 38.3%).

Conclusions

Sleep hygiene and stress management interventions could benefit the health of this population and improve driver and public safety. The associations of taxi driver sleep quality and stress indicate an opportunity for targeted intervention. Further research into sleep as an important determinant of taxi driver health is needed, especially in the burgeoning for-hire vehicle (Uber, Lyft, etc) sector.

中文翻译：

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纽约市出租车司机的睡眠行为与美国普通人口的比较

介绍

出租车司机属于低收入人群，工作时间长、压力大、久坐不动、轮班时间多，增加了他们患睡眠障碍的风险。我们评估了纽约市 (NYC) 出租车司机（主要是移民/少数民族人口）的睡眠质量与睡眠结果的关联，并检查了干预措施的制定和政策影响。

方法

一项横断面调查在司机常去的地方进行，有 211 名纽约市出租车司机同意，包括 12 项医疗结果研究睡眠量表和感知压力量表 10。对于五个领域（睡眠障碍、打鼾、呼吸急促、睡眠充足和嗜睡）和睡眠问题指数-II，计算自我报告的分数并根据具有全国代表性的 2009 年美国样本进行标准化，以获得标准化的t检验分数。<47 分低于美国平均水平，表明睡眠质量较差。结果在多变量线性和逻辑回归模型中进行了探索。

结果

几乎一半 (47%) 的司机打鼾得分低于美国平均水平，呼吸急促/阻塞的得分为 36%，嗜睡的得分为 19%。感知压力与睡眠问题指数 II ( p  < 0.001)、睡眠障碍 ( p  < 0.001)、嗜睡 ( p  < 0.001) 和睡眠充足 ( p  < 0.05) 之间存在显着关联。压力可预测睡眠充足（p  < 0.05，双变量；p  < 0.05，多变量）和呼吸急促/阻塞（p  < 0.01，双变量；p  < 0.001，多变量）。夜班司机的睡眠障碍评分明显低于白班司机（p < 0.05)。与美国男性平均水平相比，出租车司机更有可能每天睡眠不足（<7 小时）（48.5% 对 38.3%）。

结论

睡眠卫生和压力管理干预措施可能有益于这一人群的健康，并改善驾驶员和公共安全。出租车司机睡眠质量和压力的关联表明有针对性的干预机会。需要进一步研究睡眠作为出租车司机健康的重要决定因素，尤其是在新兴的出租汽车（优步、Lyft 等）领域。