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Normative developmental trajectories of actigraphic sleep variables during the preschool period: A three-wave

Émilie Tétreault1, Annie Bernier1, Célia Matte-Gagné2

  • 1University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Developmental Psychobiology
|December 20, 2018
PubMed

Insights

Preschool children experience significant sleep changes, with decreasing sleep duration and increasing sleep efficiency. This longitudinal study objectively tracked these developmental sleep patterns in 128 children.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Sleep Science
  • Pediatric Health

Background:

  • Preschool years are critical for sleep development.
  • Previous research relied on cross-sectional or subjective sleep data.
  • Objective, longitudinal data on preschool sleep trajectories are lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To model developmental trajectories of five sleep variables in preschool children.
  • To objectively assess changes in sleep duration, efficiency, and patterns.
  • To analyze inter-individual variations in sleep development during this period.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study involving 128 children.
  • Objective sleep assessment using actigraphy over three days at ages 2, 3, and 4.
  • Growth curve modeling to analyze developmental changes in sleep variables.

Main Results:

  • Demonstrated a linear decrease in daytime, nighttime, and total sleep duration.
  • Showed a linear increase in sleep efficiency and the proportion of nighttime sleep.
  • Observed uniform developmental rhythms across children, with significant individual variations in initial sleep status.

Conclusions:

  • This study provides the first objective, longitudinal model of preschool sleep development.
  • Key sleep variables exhibit predictable developmental trajectories during the preschool years.
  • Findings highlight the importance of objective measures for understanding sleep changes in early childhood.

Keywords:
actigraphychild sleepdevelopmentlongitudinalpreschool

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