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DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1811908
Sleep Deprivation in the Homeless Population and Its Relation to SUS Hospital Overcrowding: A Systematic Review
Authors
Introduction: Suffer from sleep deprivation, leading to several health risks in terms of physical and mental welfare, and this is a is a prevalent issue among the homeless individuals; Lack of sleep makes other health conditions worse, puts you at risk for new diseases, and leads to more trips to the doctor. This problem has important implications for overcrowding of hospital systems, affecting healthcare services.
Objective: The objective of this review is to study sleep deprivation among the homeless and its relationship with SUS overcrowding, in order to constitute key reasons for such association.
Methods: A systematic review that followed PRISMA guidelines. Searches in Scopus and Web of Science databases were made, studiess published in the last 5 years that discuss sleep deprivation, homeless health and hospital overcrowding were included.
Results: Eight studies were included in the review. The results showed a significant association of homelessness and sleep disorders with cold load SUS hospitals: Health: Sleep deprivation causes heart diseases, diabetes and mental illness. Lima et al. (2020) and Ferreira et al. Poor sleep, along with the continual presence of comorbidities as reported by Cell et al. Overburdened Law-Enforcement System: Sleep-deprived homeless people add to the burden of law enforcement and SUS hospitals. Oliveira et al. (2021) and Silva et al. (2022) also mention that higher incidence of sleep-related health problems leads to further burden on the healthcare system as hospital visits increase. Sleep deprivation is one of the main factors causing overcrowding in SUS hospitals. This burden cascades throughout the healthcare continuum to create an impact on health which further increases red probably more reflective and healthcare utilization, placing additional burdens upon the system. The findings show the importance of sleep deprivation as a target for intervention to alleviate hospital burdens and improve health care.
Conclusion: The review shows the relation of sleep deprivation in homeless to overcrowding departments of SUS hospitals. Research indicates that insufficient sleep increases both the demand for healthcare services and pressure on supply. Strategies to remedy sleep, and homelessness are important resources for reducing hospital overcrowding that affect the performance of SUS.
No conflict of interest has been declared by the author(s).
Publication History
Article published online:
16 September 2025
© 2025. Brazilian Sleep Academy. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
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