Prevalence of sleep disorders in school children from Sabaneta, Colombia 2005

Abstract

Sleep is one of the basic needs in a child’s life and it is essential for day time alert state. Any sleep disturbance has a negative impact on the child’s development, his/her own well-being and that of the family. Sleep disorders are common in childhood. The American Academy of Pediatrics showed in 2001 a prevalence of 20-30%. In Colombia these disorders have not been well investigated.

Objective: to find out the prevalence of sleep disorders in schoolchildren of Sabaneta, Colombia, as well as their medical histories and sociodemographic characteristics.

Methods: an observational, descriptive, randomized, cross sectional study was carried out, based on the results of 296 questionnaires answered by parents. DSM-IV criteria for the classification of sleep disorders were included in the questionnaire.

Results: prevalence of the various disorders was as follows: snoring 39.2%; sleep talking disorder 35.1%; bruxism 33.1%; obstructive sleep apnea 16.9%; cosleeping 16.9%; insomnia 14.9%; nightmares 12.8%; enuresis 9.5%; sleep walking disorder 7.4%; night awakenings 7.4%; night terrors 6.1%; fear to fall asleep 4.1%. Enuresis was significantly more frequent in males (CI: 0.14-0.96), night awakenings in children from higher socioeconomic strata (CI: 0.19-0.97), and nightmares in those older than 9 years (CI: 0.24-0.91).

Conclusion: sleep disorders are frequent in the studied group; their prevalence is similar to that reported from other countries. These results should motivate parents and pediatricians in order to make early diagnosis and, therefore, to avoid long-term complications.