Sleep Quality, Daytime Sleepiness, and Cardiovascular Strain in Career Firefighters—A Pilot Study

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Firefighters may be at an elevated risk for cardiovascular disease due to occupational stressors, including shift work, overnight emergency responses, and sleep disruption. This cross-sectional pilot study conducted within a single career fire department examined the associations among sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, and resting cardiovascular strain in full-time firefighters. Methods: Thirty-five full-time firefighters (38.3 ± 13.1 years, one female) completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and resting blood pressure assessments. A subset of 20 male firefighters completed additional arterial health assessments, including subendocardial viability ratio (SEVR), resting heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and pulse wave velocity (PWV). Pearson partial correlations, adjusted for age and BMI, were used to examine relationships between sleep measures and cardiovascular outcomes. Results: No significant associations were observed between PSQI or ESS scores and systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, pulse pressure, SEVR, HR, MAP, or PWV after adjustment for multiple comparisons (all q > 0.05). Conclusions: Sleep quality and daytime sleepiness were not significantly associated with resting cardiovascular strain measures in this sample of firefighters. Although subjective sleep disturbances are recognized as occupational concerns in the fire service, no statistically significant relationships were detected between sleep questionnaire scores and the cardiovascular outcomes examined in this exploratory pilot study. Larger studies incorporating objective sleep assessments and additional occupational and lifestyle factors are warranted.