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Pediatric sickle cell pain-sleep relationships: The roles of positive and negative affect

Cecelia R Valrie1, Kristen Alston2, Krystal Morgan3

  • 1Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University.

Health Psychology : Official Journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association
|December 16, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Low positive affect links poor sleep with high pain in youth with sickle cell disease (SCD). High negative affect worsens the pain-sleep connection, highlighting affect's role in SCD symptom management.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Pediatrics
  • Health Psychology

Background:

  • Sickle cell disease (SCD) significantly impacts youth, with pain and sleep disturbances being common comorbidities.
  • The interplay between affect (positive and negative), sleep quality, and pain severity in pediatric SCD is not fully understood.
  • Previous research has not differentiated the roles of positive and negative affect in the daily sleep-pain relationship.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mediating role of positive and negative affect in the daily relationship between sleep quality and pain severity in youth with SCD.
  • To examine the moderating effect of positive and negative affect on the sleep-pain relationship in pediatric SCD.
  • To understand the differential impact of positive and negative affect on daily symptom fluctuations.

Main Methods:

  • Eighty-eight youth (aged 8-17) with SCD and their guardians participated.
  • A twice-daily ecological momentary assessment (EMA) captured pain severity, sleep quality, positive affect, and negative affect.
  • Multilevel modeling analyses were employed to examine the proposed relationships.

Main Results:

  • Low positive affect was found to mediate the daily cyclic relationship between poor sleep quality and high pain severity.
  • High negative affect significantly strengthened the association between high pain severity and subsequent poor sleep quality.
  • These findings indicate distinct roles for positive and negative affect in the daily experience of SCD symptoms.

Conclusions:

  • Affect plays a crucial role in the daily sleep-pain relationship for youth with SCD.
  • Interventions targeting positive affect and managing negative affect may be beneficial for improving sleep and pain in pediatric SCD.
  • Further research is warranted to explore these mechanisms in diverse populations and inform targeted therapeutic strategies.
Abstract

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