How frequent night-time bathroom visits can negatively impact sleep, well-being and productivity: Examining the associations between nocturia, well-being and economic outcomes in a working-age population

Nocturia is a condition caused by reduced nocturnal bladder capacity and/or a large urine volume produced during the night. It is also relatively common, with up to 20 per cent of the overall population being affected, and its prevalence increases with age. Given its sleep-interrupting nature, nocturia is regarded to have negative implications for individuals' daytime functioning and is potentially associated with lower life satisfaction and reduced levels of workplace productivity. This study is one of the first to comprehensively examine of the associations between nocturia and a range of health, wellbeing, demographic and economic variables in a working-age population. Our results show a set of associations between nocturia and a range of conditions, outcomes and factors. On the one hand, it confirms in the working-age population what has been seen in other studies that focused more specifically on the older populations. We find that a range of chronic conditions are associated with nocturia, though our surveys do not capture all relevant chronic conditions. Not surprisingly, we see a strong association between nocturia and other sleep quality indicators such as the first interrupted period of sleep. On the other hand, our study can be more expansive about the economic and wellbeing effects of the condition given the range of data points that were collected in recent workplace surveys. Respondents who report two or more voids have lower work engagement, life satisfaction and lower work productivity resulting in lower individual wellbeing and costs to society and employers.