Sleep Problems in Late Childhood, Early Adolescence Linked to Psychiatric Symptoms

Children aged 9 to 13 who experience sleep problems may be more likely to experience internalizing symptoms (such as depression and anxiety) and/or externalizing symptoms (such as aggression and rule-breaking behaviors) than children who do not experience sleep problems, according to areport inJAMA Psychiatry.“Our findings emphasize the need for early identification and treatment of sleep problems in childhood to ameliorate or potentially prevent mental health difficulties in early adolescence,” wrote Rebecca Cooper, M.P.O., and Vanessa Cropley, Ph.D., both of the University of Melbourne, and colleag ues.The researchers analyzed data collected from 10,313 participants whose caregivers completed the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC) as part of theAdolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study when the youth were between the ages of 9 and 11 years and again two years later. Using the SDSC, the caregivers were asked about the youth ’s experiences over the prior six months with such sleep problems as sleepwalking, nightmares, night sweats, sleep breathing disorders, troubles falling and/or staying asleep, and more. The caregivers also completed the 113-item Child Behavior Checklist, which asked about any internalizing or exte rnalizing symptoms displayed by the youth in the previous six months.The children were then categorized into four sleep disturbance profiles at baseline and at two-year follow-up:Low disturbance (25.2% at baseline; 30.3% at follow-up).Sl...
Source: Psychiatr News - Category: Psychiatry Tags: ABCD study early adolescence externalizing problems internalizing problems JAMA Psychiatry late childhood night sweats nightmares psychiatric symptoms sleep problems somatic problems Source Type: research