Wong Kin Lok, Chau Shuk Kuen, Lee So Lun
Paediatrics, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kowloon, HKG.
Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong, HKG.
Cureus. 2025 Jan 3;17(1):e76837. doi: 10.7759/cureus.76837. eCollection 2025 Jan.
Background Sleep disturbances are more common in children with developmental delay (DD) than in typically developing children. There is limited research on whether sleep impact is more pronounced in children with DD and comorbidities. Objective Our study compared sleep patterns and disturbances in children with DD and neurological or psychobehavioral comorbidities to those with isolated DD. Methodology We conducted a single-center retrospective study utilizing a parent-rated questionnaire on neurodevelopmental clinic attendees over six months. Subjects were categorized into three groups: (1) isolated DD; (2) DD with comorbid neurological conditions; and (3) DD with comorbid psychobehavioral conditions. Results A total of 529 subjects were included. The results revealed minimal differences in sleep schedules between the groups. More than half of the sample (276, 52.2%) had insufficient sleep hours, with no significant variation across groups. A substantial proportion of the sample took regular naps, with 340 (79.3%) on weekdays and 279 (69.9%) on weekends. Compared to the isolated DD group, the comorbid neurological group showed a higher sleep resistance score, while comorbid psychobehavioral conditions were associated with higher sleep resistance scores and lower sleep parasomnia scores. A lower portion of the comorbid neurological group had their parents satisfied with their sleep quality (16, 32.7%, vs. 121, 52.2%). A higher percentage of parents in the comorbid psychobehavioral group reported significant daily life impact due to their children's sleep problems (65, 28.0%, vs. 41, 17.1%). Conclusions The sleep schedule in all three groups closely resembled each other. All three groups exhibited a high prevalence of sleep-related problems. Regular screening for sleep problems is recommended, particularly for children with DD and neurological or psychobehavioral comorbidities.
睡眠障碍在发育迟缓（DD）儿童中比在发育正常的儿童中更为常见。关于睡眠影响在患有DD和合并症的儿童中是否更为明显的研究有限。目的：我们的研究比较了患有DD以及神经或心理行为合并症的儿童与单纯患有DD的儿童的睡眠模式和障碍。方法：我们进行了一项单中心回顾性研究，使用一份家长评分问卷，对神经发育门诊就诊超过六个月的患者进行调查。受试者分为三组：（1）单纯DD；（2）患有合并神经疾病的DD；（3）患有合并心理行为疾病的DD。结果：共纳入529名受试者。结果显示，各组之间的睡眠时间表差异极小。超过一半的样本（276名，52.2%）睡眠时间不足，各组之间无显著差异。相当一部分样本有规律的午睡，工作日有340名（79.3%），周末有279名（69.9%）。与单纯DD组相比，合并神经疾病组的睡眠抵抗得分更高，而合并心理行为疾病与更高的睡眠抵抗得分和更低的睡眠异态睡眠得分相关。合并神经疾病组中对孩子睡眠质量满意的家长比例较低（16名，32.7%，对比121名，52.2%）。合并心理行为疾病组中，更高比例的家长报告孩子的睡眠问题对日常生活有显著影响（65名，28.0%，对比41名，17.1%）。结论：三组的睡眠时间表彼此非常相似。所有三组都表现出与睡眠相关问题的高患病率。建议定期筛查睡眠问题，特别是对于患有DD以及神经或心理行为合并症的儿童。
