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NREM Sleep Instability in Pediatric Migraine Without Aura

Michele Roccella1, Rosa Marotta2, Francesca Felicia Operto3

  • 1Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.

Frontiers in Neurology
|September 26, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Children with migraine without aura experience sleep disturbances, showing reduced sleep duration and altered NREM sleep instability. This study highlights lower arousability and less fragmented sleep in these young patients.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Sleep Medicine
  • Pediatrics

Background:

  • Migraine headaches are common in children and often associated with sleep disturbances.
  • Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep instability is a potential factor contributing to sleep issues in pediatric migraine.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate NREM sleep instability in school-aged children with migraine without aura (MoA).
  • To compare sleep parameters, including Cyclic Alternating Pattern (CAP) analysis, between children with MoA and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

  • Overnight Polysomnographic (PSG) recordings were performed on 33 children with MoA and controls.
  • Cyclic Alternating Pattern (CAP) analysis was conducted according to international criteria to assess NREM sleep instability.
  • Key sleep parameters such as sleep duration, arousal index, and CAP metrics were analyzed.

Main Results:

  • Children with MoA exhibited reduced sleep duration (TIB, SPT, TST) and an increased number of awakenings per hour compared to controls.
  • MoA group showed a reduced CAP rate, particularly in S1 and slow-wave sleep (SWS).
  • Analysis of CAP A phases revealed a decrease in slow-wave components (A1) and an increase in fast components (A2, A3), with longer A1 and A2 durations.

Conclusions:

  • Children with MoA demonstrate lower NREM sleep instability and reduced arousability.
  • Findings suggest a distinct sleep architecture pattern in pediatric migraine without aura, characterized by altered NREM sleep dynamics.

Keywords:
NREM sleep instabilitycyclic alternating pattern (CAP) analysisfull overnight polysomnographymigraine without aura (MoA)sleep macrostructure

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