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Pediatric motor activity during sleep as measured by actigraphy

Lisa J Meltzer1, Michelle Short2, Genery D Booster1

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, National Jewish Health, Denver, CO.

Sleep
|October 19, 2018
PubMed

Insights

This study provides actigraphy reference values for motor activity during sleep in children and adolescents. Boys exhibited higher sleep activity, with age-related differences noted but no consistent pattern observed.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Sleep Science
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Chronobiology

Background:

  • Actigraphy is a valuable tool for assessing sleep patterns in pediatric populations.
  • Establishing normative data is crucial for interpreting individual actigraphy results in children and adolescents.
  • Previous research has lacked comprehensive reference values for motor activity during sleep in this age group.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To establish actigraphic reference values for motor activity during sleep in healthy children and adolescents aged 8-17 years.
  • To provide normative data for percent sleep, mean activity count, and restlessness.
  • To explore sex and age-related differences in sleep motor activity.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized actigraphy data from 671 healthy children and adolescents (ages 8-17) from the US and Australia.
  • Participants wore actigraphs for at least five nights and completed sleep diaries.
  • Calculated reference values for percent sleep, mean activity count, and activity index, analyzing sex and age group differences.

Main Results:

  • Provided reference values and percentiles for sleep motor activity by age group and sex.
  • Identified that boys generally exhibit higher motor activity during sleep compared to girls.
  • Observed age-related differences in sleep activity, though patterns varied across outcome measures.

Conclusions:

  • This study offers the first comprehensive reference values for actigraphy-based motor activity during sleep in a large pediatric sample.
  • The provided reference tables and percentiles serve as a valuable resource for clinicians and researchers using actigraphy in pediatric sleep assessments.
  • Findings highlight the importance of considering sex and age when interpreting actigraphy data in children and adolescents.
Abstract

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