Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between sleep disorders and the behavior of subjects with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and control subjects using specific questionnaires. A small percentage (1.8%) of the control subjects had symptoms indicative of sleep-breathing disorders (SBD) and nocturnal sweating. Fifty-nine percent of the subjects with ASD had symptoms indicative of at least one sleep disorder, with SBD the most commonly reported (38%). In the control group, the symptoms of SBD were correlated with social, thought, attentional, aggression, externalizing and behavioral problems. In the ASD group, disorders of arousal (DA) were correlated with thinking problems, and disorders of excessive somnolence were correlated with thinking and behavioral problems. These results suggest that children and adolescents with ASD have a high frequency of sleep disorders, which in turn correlate with some of the behavioral traits that they already exhibit. Furthermore, sleep disturbances, when present in the typically developing children, also correlated with behavioral problems.
Highlights
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a persistent condition that affects communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, and it includes the presence of atypical and heterogeneous behaviors that manifest with different degrees of severity
The results showed that 59% of the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) group had indicators of at least of one type of sleep disorder, which agrees with the prevalence reported in the literature, which estimates that 44–83% of individuals experience sleep disorders in this population (Richdale, 1999; Wiggs and Stores, 2004; Johnson et al, 2009; Richdale and Schreck, 2009)
The results showed that an arousal disorder and excessive daytime sleepiness were the two disorders that were correlated with behavioral problems in the ASD group
Summary
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a persistent condition that affects communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, and it includes the presence of atypical and heterogeneous behaviors that manifest with different degrees of severity. The degree of severity is assigned with respect to the difficulties and restrictions in the skills of social communication and repetitive behavior models. There is a hypothesis that children who are more sensitive to external stimuli can become more vigilant and hyperactive and have some resistance at bedtime, increasing insomnia rates in this population (Hollway and Aman, 2011) This rhythm is known to be modulated by the neurohormone melatonin, the nocturnal production of which is decreased in
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