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Validity of child sleep diary questionnaire among junior high school children
Alexandru Gaina1, Michikazu Sekine, Xiaoli Chen
1Department of Welfare Promotion and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, 2630 Sugitani, Toyama 930-0194, Japan.
Insights
Children
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Sleep Medicine
- Adolescent Health
- Sleep Research Methodology
Background:
- The accuracy of self-reported sleep data in children is largely unverified.
- Establishing the validity of subjective sleep measures is crucial for accurate health assessments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the correlation between subjective sleep estimations and objective sleep monitoring in schoolchildren.
- To determine the reliability of children's self-reported sleep quality and quantity.
Main Methods:
- A 7-day sleep study involving 42 healthy adolescents (13-14 years old).
- Utilized Actiwatch devices for objective sleep data and questionnaires for subjective sleep parameters.
- Analyzed weekday sleep data using Pearson's correlation and paired t-tests.
Main Results:
- High correlations (0.97-0.99) were found between subjective and objective measures for sleep start time, sleep end time, and assumed sleep length.
- Sleep latency showed a moderate correlation (0.49) between subjective and objective data.
- Children tended to overestimate their total sleep duration.
Conclusions:
- Subjective sleep questionnaires are reliable for screening sleep habits in children, particularly for sleep duration and timing.
- While sleep latency reporting may be less accurate, overall sleep habit questionnaires are valuable tools.
- Findings support the use of self-report sleep questionnaires in large-scale surveys and clinical screenings.
Background:
The validity of sleep quality and quantity indices as reported by schoolchildren has not been established. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship between subjective sleep habits estimation and objective measurement data in schoolchildren.
Methods:
The study consisted of 42 healthy junior high school children aged 13-14. Sleep log information was gathered over 7 consecutive days, using a sleep-monitoring device (Actiwatch) and a questionnaire which covered the following aspects for sleep quality and quantity: bed time, sleep latency, sleep start, sleep end, wake up and assumed sleep length. The means of the sleep indices for 5 weekdays were used for analysis. Pearson's correlation coefficients and paired t-tests were used to evaluate the correlation and difference between subjective and objective sleep parameters.
Results:
The correlation coefficient between subjective and objective records was 0.49 (p < 0.001) for sleep latency, 0.99 (p < 0.001) for sleep start time, 0.99 (p < 0.001) for sleep end time, and 0.97 (p < 0.001) for assumed sleep length. The difference between subjective and objective records was 7.67 min (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.64-10.71) for sleep latency, and 0:02 min (95% CI: -0:01-0:05) for sleep start time, 0:02 min (95% CI: 0:01-0:03) for sleep end time, and 8.19 min (95% CI: 4.93-11.45) for assumed sleep length.
Conclusions:
Although children tended to overestimate sleeping hours, the correlation between subjective and objective sleep indices except sleep latency was quite high. Thus, children's sleep questionnaire can be applied to surveys for sleep habits screening.
