ORCID Profile
0000-0003-0288-2505
Current Organisations
Brigham and Women's Hospital
,
Harvard Medical School
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Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 08-04-2021
DOI: 10.1101/2021.04.06.21254996
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in social isolation and reports of insomnia. However, reports of changes in sleep duration and associated factors are few. Data were from an online survey of adults recruited via social media that included a question asking whether the respondent slept less or more after the onset of the pandemic. Analyses determined the association between changes in sleep duration and self reported sociodemographic and occupational information beliefs about COVID-19 changes in sleep patterns and responses pertaining to loneliness, anxiety, and depression. There were 5,175 respondents 53.9% had a change in sleep duration. 17.1% slept less and 36.7% slept more. Sleeping more was related to greater education, being single/ orced/separated, unemployed or a student. Being retired, orced/separated or a homemaker, and living in the Mountain or Central time zones were associated with less sleep. Beliefs that COVID-19 would result in personal adverse consequences was associated with both more and less sleep. However, the strongest associations with both more and less sleep were seen with depression, anxiety, and loneliness with adjusted odds ratios ranging from 1.92 ( 95% CI 1.67-2.21) for sleeping more and loneliness to 5.29 ( 95% CI 4.1-6.7) for sleeping less and anxiety. Changes in sleep duration since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic were highly prevalent among social media users and were associated with several sociodemographic factors and beliefs that COVID-19 would have adverse personal impacts. However, the strongest associations occurred with worse mental health suggesting that improvements may occur with better sleep.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 22-02-2021
DOI: 10.2196/28057
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 22-06-2021
Abstract: Due to the significant mortality and morbidity consequences of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic among older adults, these in iduals were urged to avoid going out in public and socializing with others, among other major disruptions to daily life. While these significant and often unavoidable disruptions have been shown to bear consequences for mental health, less attention has been devoted to behavioral changes, such as changes to sleeping or eating due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and their implications for emotional well-being. We utilized data from a nationally representative survey of Medicare beneficiaries (aged 65 and older), which was administered between June and October 2020 (n = 3,122). We examine the relationship between self-reported changes to daily behaviors (e.g., sleep, drinking alcohol, and exercise) and emotional impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., feelings of depression and anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic) using stepwise hierarchical multivariable Poisson regression. We found that worse sleep quality, sleeping more or less, watching more television, and walking less were associated with more feelings of depression and anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous research has shown a connection between the significant and often unavoidable disruptions to daily life due to the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g., sheltering in place) and adverse mental health symptoms. Less attention has been paid to potentially modifiable behaviors, such as sleep and exercise. Our findings highlight the behavioral changes associated with adverse emotional impacts among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research may evaluate whether behavioral interventions may aim to attenuate the impact of pandemics on daily, modifiable behaviors to buffer against adverse emotional impacts.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 21-05-2020
Abstract: mid the COVID-19 pandemic, public health policies to curb the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and its associated disease, COVID-19, have resulted in significant alterations to daily routines (eg, work-from-home policies) that may have enabled longer sleep duration among the general population. e aimed to examine changes in estimated sleep duration in 5 major metropolitan areas before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. e conducted a prospective observational study using estimated sleep duration data obtained from a smartphone app. The data were obtained from regular users of the smartphone app before and after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020. We compared within-subject estimated sleep duration before and during the COVID-19 pandemic using generalized linear mixed models. mong the 2,871,037 observations, 957,022 (33.3%) were from users in London 549,151 (19.1%) were from users in Los Angeles 846,527 (29.5%) were from users in New York City 251,113 (8.7%) were from users in Seoul and 267,224 (9.3%) were from users in Stockholm. The average age of the users in the s le was 35 years (SE 11 years). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, people residing in Seoul had the shortest estimated sleep duration (mean 6 hours 28 minutes, SE 11.6 minutes) and those residing in Stockholm had the longest estimated sleep duration (mean 7 hours 34 minutes, SE 9.9 minutes). The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a 13.7 minute increase in estimated sleep duration when comparing March 2019 and March 2020 (95% CI 13.1-14.3, i P /i & .001) and an increase of 22.3 minutes when comparing April 2019 and April 2020 (95% CI 21.5-23.1, i P /i & .001). he average estimated sleep duration increased sharply in the months after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This finding suggests that the implementation of COVID-19 mitigation strategies has provided people worldwide with increased opportunities to sleep, which may enhance the response of the immune system to viral pathogens.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-03-2021
DOI: 10.1186/S12889-021-10410-X
Abstract: Governments worldwide recommended unprecedented measures to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). As pressure mounted to scale back measures, understanding public priorities was critical. We assessed initial public adherence with and support for stay-at-home orders in nations and cities with different SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 death rates. Cross-sectional surveys were administered to representative s les of adults aged ≥18 years from regions with different SARS-CoV-2 prevalences from April 2–8, 2020. Regions included two nations [the United States (US—high prevalence) and Australia (AU—low prevalence)] and two US cities [New York City (NY—high prevalence) and Los Angeles (LA—low prevalence)]. Regional SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 prevalence (cumulative SARS-CoV-2 infections, COVID-19 deaths) as of April 8, 2020: US (363,321, 10,845), AU (5956, 45), NY (81,803, 4571), LA (7530, 198). Of 8718 eligible potential respondents, 5573 (response rate, 63.9%) completed surveys. Median age was 47 years (range, 18–89) 3039 (54.5%) were female. Of 5573 total respondents, 4560 (81.8%) reported adherence with recommended quarantine or stay-at-home policies (range of s les, 75.5–88.2%). Additionally, 29.1% of respondents screened positive for anxiety or depression symptoms (range of s les, 28.6–32.0%), with higher prevalences among those of younger age, female gender, and those in quarantine or staying at home most of the time versus those who did not report these behaviours. Despite elevated prevalences of adverse mental health symptoms and significant life disruptions, 5022 respondents (90.1%) supported government-imposed stay-at-home orders (range of s les, 88.9–93.1%). Of these, 90.8% believed orders should last at least three more weeks or until public health or government officials recommended, with support spanning the political spectrum. Public adherence with COVID-19 mitigation policies was highly prevalent, in both highly-affected (US, NY) and minimally-affected regions (AU, LA). Despite disruption of respondents’ lives, the vast majority supported continuation of extended stay-at-home orders. Despite common support, these two countries erged in stringent mitigation implementation, which may have contributed to subsequent outcomes. These results reveal the importance of surveillance of public support for and adherence with such policies during the COVID-19 pandemic and for future infectious disease outbreaks.
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 24-04-2020
DOI: 10.1101/2020.04.22.20076141
Abstract: Governments worldwide have recommended unprecedented measures to mitigate the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. As pressure mounts to scale back these measures, understanding public compliance with and priorities for COVID-19 mitigation is critical. The main aim of this study was to assess public compliance with and support for government-imposed stay-at-home orders in nations and cities with different COVID-19 infection and death rates. In this cross-sectional study, questionnaires were administered to nationally representative respondents from April 2-8, 2020. Regions with different disease prevalence included two nations [the United States (US—high) and Australia (AU—low)] and two cities [New York (NY—high) and Los Angeles (LA—low)]. For adults 18 years or older residing in specified regions, eligible respondents were empaneled until representative quotas were reached for age, gender, and either race and ethnicity (US, NY, LA) or ancestry (AU), matching the 2010 US or 2016 AU census. Of 8718 eligible potential respondents, 5573 (response rate, 63.9%) completed surveys (US: 3010 NY: 507 LA: 525 AU: 1531). The median age was 47 years (range, 18-89) 3039 (54.5%) were female. The prevalence of COVID-19 in each region (cumulative infections, deaths) as of April 8, 2020: US (458610, 15659), AU (5956, 45), 1 NY (81803, 4571), LA (7530, 198). 2 Public compliance with and attitudes regarding government-imposed stay-at-home orders were evaluated and compared between regions. Of 5573 total respondents, 4560 (81.8%) reported compliance with recommended quarantine or stay-at-home policies (range of s les, 75.5%-88.2%). Despite significant disruptions of social and work life, health, and behavior, 5022 respondents (90.1%) supported government-imposed stay-at-home orders (range of s les, 88.9%-93.1%). Of these, 90.8% believe orders should last at least three more weeks or until public health or government officials recommend, with such support spanning the political spectrum. Public compliance with stringent quarantine and stay-at-home policies was very high, in both highly-affected (US, NY) and minimally-affected regions (AU, LA). Despite extensive disruption of respondents’ lives, the vast majority supported continuation of long-term government-imposed stay-at-home orders. These findings have important implications for policymakers grappling with the decision as to when to lift restrictions.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 18-11-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-06-2021
DOI: 10.1111/RESP.14094
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2021
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 02-02-2021
DOI: 10.2196/20546
Abstract: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, public health policies to curb the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and its associated disease, COVID-19, have resulted in significant alterations to daily routines (eg, work-from-home policies) that may have enabled longer sleep duration among the general population. We aimed to examine changes in estimated sleep duration in 5 major metropolitan areas before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a prospective observational study using estimated sleep duration data obtained from a smartphone app. The data were obtained from regular users of the smartphone app before and after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020. We compared within-subject estimated sleep duration before and during the COVID-19 pandemic using generalized linear mixed models. Among the 2,871,037 observations, 957,022 (33.3%) were from users in London 549,151 (19.1%) were from users in Los Angeles 846,527 (29.5%) were from users in New York City 251,113 (8.7%) were from users in Seoul and 267,224 (9.3%) were from users in Stockholm. The average age of the users in the s le was 35 years (SE 11 years). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, people residing in Seoul had the shortest estimated sleep duration (mean 6 hours 28 minutes, SE 11.6 minutes) and those residing in Stockholm had the longest estimated sleep duration (mean 7 hours 34 minutes, SE 9.9 minutes). The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a 13.7 minute increase in estimated sleep duration when comparing March 2019 and March 2020 (95% CI 13.1-14.3, P .001) and an increase of 22.3 minutes when comparing April 2019 and April 2020 (95% CI 21.5-23.1, P .001). The average estimated sleep duration increased sharply in the months after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This finding suggests that the implementation of COVID-19 mitigation strategies has provided people worldwide with increased opportunities to sleep, which may enhance the response of the immune system to viral pathogens.
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 08-07-2023
DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.06.23292337
Abstract: This study assesses whether chronotype is related to COVID-19 infection and whether there is an interaction with shift work. Cross-sectional survey of 19,821 U.S. adults COVID-19 infection occurred in 40% of participants, 32.6% morning and 17.2% evening chronotypes. After adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic factors, shift work, sleep duration and comorbidities, morning chronotype was associated with a higher (aOR: 1.15, 95% CI 1.10-1.21) and evening chronotype with a lower (aOR: 0.82, 95% CI: 0.78-0.87) prevalence of COVID-19 infection in comparison to an intermediate chronotype. Working exclusively night shifts was not associated with higher prevalence of COVID-19. Morning chronotype and working some evening shifts was associated with the highest prevalence of previous COVID-19 infection (aOR: 1.87, 95% CI: 1.28-2.74). Morning chronotype and working a mixture of shifts increase risk of COVID-19 infection. Describe the association between chronotype and prevalence of COVID-19 infection Summarize the combined effect of chronotype and shift work on the prevalence of COVID-19 infection
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 18-02-2021
Abstract: EMOVE
No related grants have been discovered for Rebecca Robbins.