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Defining the roles of actigraphy and parent logs for assessing sleep variables in preschool children
Janet C Lam1, E Mark Mahone, Thornton B A Mason
1Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland, USA.
Insights
Parent logs overestimate nighttime sleep in young children compared to actigraphy. Actigraphy is more accurate for nighttime sleep, while parent logs are better for daytime sleep and sleep onset.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Sleep Medicine
- Child Development
Background:
- Actigraphy offers objective sleep-wake cycle assessment.
- Parent logs provide subjective sleep data in young children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the validity of actigraphy and parent logs for assessing sleep-wake cycles in preschool-aged children.
- To determine the accuracy of parent-reported sleep data against objective actigraphy measures.
Main Methods:
- 59 healthy children aged 3-5 years participated.
- Children wore actigraphy watches for one week.
- Parents maintained sleep logs concurrently, with input from daycare workers.
Main Results:
- Parents overestimated nighttime sleep duration by 13-22% compared to actigraphy.
- No significant differences were found in sleep onset times or daytime napping.
- Parents reported later weekend wake times and fewer nighttime awakenings than actigraphy indicated.
Conclusions:
- Parent logs are less accurate for measuring nighttime sleep duration and wake times.
- Actigraphy is a more reliable tool for assessing nighttime sleep and sleep offset.
- Parent logs are useful for evaluating daytime sleep and sleep onset in preschool children.
Abstract:
Actigraphy provides a non-invasive objective means to assess sleep-wake cycles. In young children, parent logs can also be useful for obtaining sleep-wake information. The authors hypothesized that actigraphy and parent logs were both equally valid instruments in healthy preschool-aged children. The authors studied 59 children aged 3 to 5 years in full-time day care. Each child was screened for medical problems and developmental delays before being fitted with an actigraphy watch, which was worn for 1 week. Parents maintained logs of sleep and wakefulness during the same period, with input from day care workers. In general, parents overestimated the amount of nighttime sleep measured by actigraphy by 13% to 22% (all significant). Although there was no difference in sleep onset times, parents reported later rise times on the weekend and fewer nighttime awakenings. There was no significant difference between parent logs and actigraphy with regard to daytime napping. The authors conclude that parent logs are best utilized in assessing daytime sleep and sleep onset, whereas actigraphy should be used to assess nighttime sleep and sleep offset time.
