Journal of Pediatric Psychology Advance Access originally published online on January 11, 2008
Journal of Pediatric Psychology 2008 33(4):349-357; doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsm126
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Web Survey of Sleep Problems Associated with Early-onset Bipolar Spectrum Disorders
1Department of Psychiatry, The Ohio State University, 2Department of Psychiatry and Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University, 3Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University and Columbus Children's Hospital, and 4Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation
All correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Professor Nicholas Lofthouse, PHD, Department of Psychiatry, The Ohio State University, Neuroscience Facility, 1670 Upham Drive, Room 560-A, Columbus, OH 43210-1250, USA. E-mail: Nicholas.Lofthouse{at}osumc.edu
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Objective As research on sleep difficulties associated with Early-Onset Bipolar Spectrum Disorders (EBSD) is limited, a web-based survey was developed to further explore these problems. Methods 494 parents of 4-to-12 year-olds, identified by parents as being diagnosed with EBSD, completed a web survey about past and current EBSD-related sleep problems. The survey included Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) items and sleep problems from the International Classification of Sleep Disorders 2nd edition. Results Nearly all parents reported some type of past or current EBSD-sleep problem. Most occurred during a worst mood period, particularly with mixed manic-depressive symptoms. Symptoms caused impairments at home, school, or with peers in 96.9% of the sample and across all three contexts in 64.0% of children. Sleep problems were also noted after three-day weekends and Spring and Fall Daylight Savings time changes. Conclusions Findings, study limitations, and implications for treatment and etiology are discussed.
Key words: bipolar disorder; childhood; sleep problems; web survey.
Received April 1, 2007; revision received September 19, 2007; accepted November 16, 2007