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Published on: March 27, 2012

Use of clonidine in children with autism spectrum disorders

Xue Ming1, Emily Gordon, Ning Kang

  • 1Department of Neuroscience and Pediatrics, UMDNJ - New Jersey Medical School, 90 Bergen Street, Doctor's Office Center 8100, Newark, NJ 07103, USA. mingxu@umdnj.edu

Brain & Development
|February 19, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Clonidine effectively improved sleep initiation and reduced night awakenings in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While it showed some benefits for behavioral issues, further placebo-controlled trials are needed to confirm efficacy and safety.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) frequently experience sleep disturbances and behavioral challenges.
  • Managing sleep disorders in this population can be particularly difficult.
  • Clonidine, an alpha2-adrenergic agonist, has demonstrated efficacy in reducing impulsivity, inattention, hyperactivity, and acting as a sedative.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the effectiveness of clonidine in treating insomnia, hyperactivity, inattention, mood disorders, and aggressive behaviors in children with ASD.
  • To assess parent-reported outcomes of clonidine treatment in this cohort.

Main Methods:

  • An open-label, retrospective study was conducted.
  • Parental reports were used to assess sleep initiation, sleep maintenance, and behavioral changes before and during clonidine treatment.
  • The study included a cohort of 19 children diagnosed with ASD.

Main Results:

  • Clonidine significantly reduced sleep onset latency and the frequency of night awakenings.
  • Improvements in attention deficits, hyperactivity, mood instability, and aggressiveness were observed to a lesser extent.
  • Reported side effects associated with clonidine treatment were generally tolerable.

Conclusions:

  • Clonidine shows promise as a treatment for sleep disturbances in children with ASD.
  • The medication may offer some benefits for associated behavioral symptoms.
  • Further investigation through placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trials is warranted to establish definitive clinical efficacy and safety in ASD.

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