Sleep disturbance negatively impacts the quality of life and recovery. Our objective was to evaluate the relationship between the individual patient and surgical factors with greater sleep disturbance following breast surgery.

In this prospective longitudinal study, patients completed validated measures regarding sleep disturbance, pain, opioid use, and psychological symptoms preoperatively and then 2 weeks, 6 and 12 months postoperatively. Univariable and multivariable generalized estimating equations evaluated demographic, surgical, pain, and psychological predictors of sleep disturbance during the first year after breast surgery.

Female patients (n=259) reported varying degrees of sleep disturbance, which were longitudinally associated with pain and psychosocial factors (eg, anxiety, depression, and affect). Independent preoperative predictors of worse sleep disturbance included younger age (B=−0.09, P=0.006), opioid use (B=3.09, P=0.02), and higher pain (B=0.19, P=<0.001) and anxiety (B=0.45, P=<0.001) at baseline. In addition, higher baseline positive affect (B=−0.14, P=<0.012) and the surgical category total mastectomy without reconstruction (B=−2.81, P=<0.006) were independently associated with lower sleep disturbance. Those with worse baseline sleep required more opioid analgesics during surgical recovery, and continued use of opioids at 2 weeks postsurgery was associated with disturbed sleep.

Certain patient characteristics, including younger age and baseline anxiety, positive affect, pain, and opioid use, were associated with greater sleep disturbance in the first year after breast surgery. Sleep disturbance was also associated with the greater perioperative and postoperative opioid requirements. Preoperative interventions (eg, anxiety management, cultivating positive affect, and multimodal pain management) in high-risk individuals may enhance sleep and recovery postoperatively, and allow more moderate and less prolonged opioid use.