Pediatric Sleep Disorders in Youth with Psychiatric Disorders
- 1. Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Canada
Abstract
Pediatric sleep disorders are reported in 95% of youth with mental and neurological conditions. They are associated with mood disturbances, behavioral problems, and impaired academic performance. They predict an earlier onset of alcohol, cigarette, and illicit drug use and the onset, severity and likelihood of relapse of psychiatric disorders. Moreover, sleep problems in children negatively impacts their parents’ sleep and thus cause a cascade of burdensome problems including parenting stress which can be associated with harsh parenting. In addition, co-morbid sleep disorders significantly reduce the effectiveness of psychological and pharmacological interventions. Effective treatment of pediatric sleep disorders, however, contributes to better outcomes following these interventions. Effective behavioral interventions for pediatric sleep disorders in youth have been empirically validated. Such interventions lead to clinically significant improvements and can be effectively implemented by sleep specialists and non-sleep-specialists (e.g., psychologists). However, due to limited availability of sleep specialists and the lack of training that healthcare providers receive on sleep interventions, only a small fraction of children with sleep disorders receive appropriate treatment. The objective of this mini review is to provide a rationale for the integration of evidence-based interventions for pediatric sleep disorders into mental health services, and to review available behavioral evidence-based interventions for pediatric sleep disorders.