Brain Evaluation

Children with Eczema had More Sleep Problems, higher levels of ADHD and Oppositional Behavior

 

A recent study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (Vol 6 No. 6 2010) reported that those children diagnosed with eczema had elevated rhinitis and asthma severity scores as well as more behavioral variables of hyperactivity and oppositional behaviors in addition to more sleep problems.  The suggestion is that daytime behavior of overactivity and oppositional symptoms is mediated independently by the effects of eczema, asthma and rhinitis on the quality of sleep.  Compared to control subjects, children diagnosed with eczema had a lowered general quality of life as well as more disturbed sleep with more problems initiating and maintaining sleep.  The idea being that having eczema affects sleep and sleep affects daytime behavior of overactivity and defiance.

 

Sleep Patterns and Daytime Functioning in Children with Insomnia

Sleep problems were assessed of children between the ages of five to ten years by their parents.  Reduced sleep as reported by the parents was found to be predictive of more delinquent behavior and concentration problems in their children.  When parents reported that children were awake after initially falling asleep, this was also predictive of more pronounced daytime sleepiness.  Greater daytime sleepiness was seen as related to the presence of social problems in the children.  Consequently two factors were seen as affecting the daytime behavior of children, the total sleep time as well as the amount of time spent awake after initially falling asleep (Velten-Schurian et.al., 2010, Sleep Medicine, 11).

RLS, Growing Pains, ADHD

Remember RLS, Restless Legs Syndrome? That is when there is an irresistible urge to move the legs, it starts or worsens during rest, it can be temporarily relieved by movement and is worse in the evening. Growing pains can be the pre-cursor to RLS.  Growing pains can create poor sleep at night and hyperactivity during the day.  RLS can create hyperactivity with the urge to move.  RLS and ADHD overlap, proven by many studies.  There is a higher propensity of ADHD in RLS and RLS in ADHD.  ADHD established by testing was found to be more common in RLS than insomnia patients or controls (Wagner, Walters, Fisher, 2004). RLS found in population diagnosed with ADHD using neuropsychological evaluation (20 percent) (Zak, Fisher, Couvadelli, Walters, Moss, 2009).