Rapid eye movement sleep in adolescent females with borderline personality disorder

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was detecting Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep abnormalities in adolescent females with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Method: A case control study included a convenient sample of 30 adolescent females with BPD compared to 30 matched healthy controls. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and an overnight sleep lab polysomnographic study were applied to both groups to assess sleep. Results: Patients with BPD were subjectively dissatisfied with the quality of sleep compared to controls (p<0.001). Abnormalities in REM sleep in patients when compared to controls were higher REM percent (p=0.001), shorter REM latency (p=0.001), higher REM density (p=0.001) and higher number of REM periods in the first half of the night (p=0.000). Conclusion: REM sleep abnormalities are found in adolescent patients with BPD, which may be considered as trait markers for BPD.