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Subjective Assessment of Sleep in Infantile Autism: A Comparative Study
Maydelin Alfonso-Alfonso1, Lilia María Morales-Chacón2, Justa Elizabeth González-Naranjo3
1Neurophysiology Department, International Center for Neurological Restoration, 25th Ave, No 15805, 11300 Havana, Cuba. malfonso@neuro.ciren.cu.
Insights
Children with autism experience significant sleep disturbances, as indicated by the Sleep Habits in Children Survey (CSHQ). This study highlights widespread sleep dysfunction, excluding breathing disorders, in this population.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Developmental Psychology
- Sleep Medicine
Background:
- Sleep disturbances are prevalent in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- Objective assessment tools are crucial for identifying and managing these sleep issues.
- The Sleep Habits in Children Survey (CSHQ) is a validated instrument for evaluating childhood sleep patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To conduct a subjective sleep assessment in children with primary autism using the CSHQ.
- To compare sleep patterns in children with autism to a neurotypical control group.
- To identify specific sleep disturbances prevalent in children with autism based on CSHQ subscales.
Main Methods:
- A prospective cross-sectional study involving 21 children diagnosed with primary autism.
- Utilized the CSHQ for comprehensive sleep disturbance evaluation.
- Employed the Mann-Whitney U test to analyze differences between the autism and control groups.
Main Results:
- Children with autism exhibited significantly higher total CSHQ scores, indicating substantial sleep dysfunction (p=0.00).
- All CSHQ subscales, except for sleep breathing disorders, showed statistically significant differences between the groups (p=0.00).
- This suggests a broad range of sleep problems in children with autism.
Conclusions:
- A high prevalence of sleep disturbances exists in children with primary autism.
- Sleep breathing disorders did not show significant differences between the autism and control groups.
- The CSHQ is effective in identifying diverse sleep issues in this population.
Abstract:
Sleep disturbances are very common in children with autism; it is for this reason that instruments that facilitate their evaluation are necessary.
Objectives:
Perform sleep assessment from a subjective perspective in a group of children with primary autism and compare them with a control group, using the Sleep Habits in Children Survey (CSHQ), with the purpose of determining sleep disturbances according to the subscales used.
Method:
A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a group of 21 patients with primary autism. For the evaluation of sleep disturbances, we chose the CSHQ survey. The differences between the independent groups were calculated by applying a Mann⁻Whitney U test.
Results:
In the group of children with autism, higher values of the total scale were observed in comparison with the control group (p = 0.00) which It is congruent with a large sleep dysfunction. Significant differences were observed for all subscales (p = 0.00), with the exception of the subscale number 7.
Conclusions:
A high presence of sleep disturbances was observed in children with primary autism, with the exception of sleep breathing disorders, which did not show significant differences between the groups.
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