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Updated: Jun 26, 2025
Investigating Intestinal Inflammation in DSS-induced Model of IBD
Published on: February 1, 2012
Sleep Patterns, Pain, and Emotional Functioning in Youth with Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Margo M Szabo1,2, Cecelia I Nelson3, Christa L Lilly3
1Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Insights
Children and adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) experience poor sleep quality, which is linked to their pain. Healthcare providers should assess sleep quality to improve outcomes for pediatric IBD patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Sleep Medicine
- Psychosocial Health
Background:
- Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in youth is associated with pain and psychosocial challenges.
- Sleep difficulties are common in pediatric IBD but understudied.
- The interplay between sleep, pain, and mood in pediatric IBD is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine sleep patterns in youth with IBD.
- To investigate the relationship between sleep, disease symptoms (pain), and mood in pediatric IBD patients.
Main Methods:
- 25 children and adolescents with IBD participated.
- Actigraphy watches were used for objective sleep monitoring over 14 days.
- Daily self-report measures of affect and pain were collected.
Main Results:
- Increased sleep onset latency was associated with next-day pain.
- Pain was linked to better next-night sleep efficiency.
- No significant association was found between sleep and negative affect.
Conclusions:
- Youth with IBD experience poor sleep quality, significantly related to pain.
- Screening for and addressing sleep quality is recommended for pediatric IBD patients.
- Further research is needed on the feasibility of actigraphy in clinical settings.
Objective:
Youth with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may be at increased risk for sleep difficulties due to the painful and inflammatory nature of their disease. Moreover, children and adolescents with IBD experience impairment across a variety of psychosocial domains. However, researchers have yet to investigate the complex interplay between sleep, disease-related symptoms, and psychosocial factors in this population. The purpose of this study was to examine sleep patterns, pain, and mood in pediatric IBD.
Methods:
A sample of 25 children and adolescents with IBD (Mage = 14.24, Range = 10-18 years; 56% male) were recruited from a pediatric gastroenterology clinic. Youth wore an actigraphy watch and completed daily measures of affect and pain over the course of 14 days. Statistical analyses involved repeated measures general estimating equations.
Results:
No significant association for sleep with negative affect was demonstrated. Despite majority of this sample being in disease remission, results revealed that increased sleep onset latency was associated with presence of next day pain and pain was associated with better next night sleep efficiency.
Conclusions:
Findings of the current study suggest youth with IBD experience poor sleep quality, which is significantly related to the pain they experience. Consequently, healthcare providers should screen for and address sleep quality to optimize outcomes in their pediatric patients. Objectively assessing sleep patterns (e.g., actigraphy) may prove useful for pediatric IBD samples; however, additional research is needed to determine actigraphy's feasibility and efficacy in assessing sleep patterns in real world settings (e.g., pediatric medical clinics).
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