Sleep patterns in pediatric sickle cell disease

Abstract

Background: Research examining sleep in children with sickle cell disease (SCD) has focused on the increased occurrence of specific sleep disorders (i.e., sleep-disordered breathing, hypoxemia, nocturnal enuresis), but no research exists describing general sleep behaviors of children with SCD. The purpose of the current study was to compare sleep patterns and sleep behaviors in children with SCD and healthy controls and examine the associations of demographic and disease factors with sleep in the SCD group.

Procedure: The Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire was completed by parents of 4- to 10-year-old children with SCD (n = 54) and children attending well-care clinics in the same urban hospital (n = 52). Within the SCD group, demographic and disease factors [i.e., genotype, healthcare utilization, SCD complications, and socioeconomic status (SES)] were determined by medical chart review.

Results: Parents of children with SCD reported significantly more behaviors associated with night waking and sleep-disordered breathing than the control group. Within the SCD group, parasomnias were related to SES, enuresis, more severe genotypes, SCD complications, and healthcare utilization. Sleep-disordered breathing was also related to SES, enuresis, and SCD complications.

Conclusions: Results indicate the importance of routinely assessing sleep in children with SCD as they are more likely to exhibit disrupted sleep than children with similar demographic backgrounds. Given significantly higher rates of parent reported sleep-disordered breathing and night waking in this population, it is important to consider interventions to minimize disruptions to overnight sleep and improve daytime functioning for quality of life in children with SCD.