About this Research Topic
Although sleep complaints are commonly reported in children with special needs, their sleep remains poorly investigated. Furthermore, if sleep is a biopsychosocial marker of brain development, we have overlooked an important clinical population: children with developmental disabilities.
Investigating several sleep parameters (e.g., slow wave activity) may aid our understanding of brain development but thus far, scientific findings are scarce regarding sleep of children with rare disorders.
First, in the literature, prevalence rates of sleep problems an average 76% in individuals with heterogeneous diagnoses and 65% in individuals with specific diagnosis have been reported. In this, several developmental disabilities (e.g., autism spectrum disorder, Angelman syndrome, Down’s syndrome, Smith Magenis syndrome) have been a topic of research, yet others such as syndromes with intellectual disabilities have received little attention. Second, questionnaires have been the preferred method of investigation. However, more studies based on polysomnography providing insight into the sleep structure are needed. Third, few studies have focused on the circadian rhythm in addition to the homeostatic drive to sleep. Lastly, sleep impacts wakefulness, and subsequent sleep, and so forth, in a potentially cyclic relationship, which may eventually impair a child’s overall wellbeing.
Several important questions concerning the impact of sleep, sleepiness and/or sleeplessness in children with rare syndromes are to be investigated. Also, more associative studies examining the impact of poor sleep on their daytime behavior are needed. In special populations, poor sleep is often accompanied by a plethora of other problems which may mimic, exacerbate or cause poor sleep in both subjective (e.g., perception of drowsiness) and objective (e.g., changes in sleep structure) manners.
This Research Topic serves to foster a growing understanding of the relationship between aberrant brain networks and phenotypes of neurodevelopmental disability, in particular rare syndromes.
We welcome colleagues to submit all article types including original research, series, and review papers on the topic of sleep in Special populations. We particularly welcome scientific work focusing on children with rare disorders and/or intellectual disabilities.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Investigating several sleep parameters (e.g., slow wave activity) may aid our understanding of brain development but thus far, scientific findings are scarce regarding sleep of children with rare disorders.
First, in the literature, prevalence rates of sleep problems an average 76% in individuals with heterogeneous diagnoses and 65% in individuals with specific diagnosis have been reported. In this, several developmental disabilities (e.g., autism spectrum disorder, Angelman syndrome, Down’s syndrome, Smith Magenis syndrome) have been a topic of research, yet others such as syndromes with intellectual disabilities have received little attention. Second, questionnaires have been the preferred method of investigation. However, more studies based on polysomnography providing insight into the sleep structure are needed. Third, few studies have focused on the circadian rhythm in addition to the homeostatic drive to sleep. Lastly, sleep impacts wakefulness, and subsequent sleep, and so forth, in a potentially cyclic relationship, which may eventually impair a child’s overall wellbeing.
Several important questions concerning the impact of sleep, sleepiness and/or sleeplessness in children with rare syndromes are to be investigated. Also, more associative studies examining the impact of poor sleep on their daytime behavior are needed. In special populations, poor sleep is often accompanied by a plethora of other problems which may mimic, exacerbate or cause poor sleep in both subjective (e.g., perception of drowsiness) and objective (e.g., changes in sleep structure) manners.
This Research Topic serves to foster a growing understanding of the relationship between aberrant brain networks and phenotypes of neurodevelopmental disability, in particular rare syndromes.
We welcome colleagues to submit all article types including original research, series, and review papers on the topic of sleep in Special populations. We particularly welcome scientific work focusing on children with rare disorders and/or intellectual disabilities.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Keywords: Sleep, rare disorders, sleeplessness, sleep in children
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