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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Sleep Sci 2021; 14(03): 214-223
DOI: 10.5935/1984-0063.20200073
ORIGINAL ARTICLES

Can sleep profiles predict autistic traits in siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder?

Alshaimaa A. Naeem
1   Egyptian ministry of health, Egypt.
,
Hala A. El-boraie
2   Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Egypt.
,
Tamer A. Abou-Elsaad
3   Phoniatrics Unit, Department of E.N.T., Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Egypt.
,
Mohammed E. Khater
2   Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Egypt.
,
Md. Dilshad Manzar
4   Department of Nursing, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Majmaah University, Majmaah 11952, Saudi Arabia.
,
David Warren Spence
5   Independent researcher, 652 Dufferin St., Toronto, Canada.
,
Seithikurippu R. Pandi-Perumal
6   Somnogen Canada Inc., College Street, Toronto, Canada.
,
Nevin Fayez Zaki
2   Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Egypt.
7   Sleep Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Egypt.
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ABSTRACT

Introduction: As the prevalence of ASD (autism spectrum disorder) continues to rise, so does the need to evaluate the impact of associated difficulties on both the diagnosed child and the immediate family.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to assess reports of sleep disturbance or abnormal sleep behaviours (sleep profiles) in the siblings of diagnosed autistic children (referred to throughout this study as high-risk siblings, or HR-sibs) and to determine if these sleep patterns correlated with evidence of disturbed sleep among their siblings who had full symptoms of autistic spectrum disorder.

Material and Methods: This case control cross-sectional study investigated 64 autistic children, 80 HR-sibs, and 80 typically developing children. Each study subject was assessed for sleep problems and autistic traits through the use of a sleep-wake diary, a school sleep habit survey, and a childhood autism spectrum test.

Results: Children with autism spectrum disorders and their HR-sibs showed no significant differences regarding their sleep profiles. Typically, developing children had more middle insomnia than HR-sibs and had more wake latency.

Conclusion: Increased risks for sleep problems in children with autism and their HR-sibs emphasized the importance of early screening for sleep problems in children with autism and their siblings.

Keywords:

Sleep - Autistic Disorder - Autism Spectrum Disorder - Siblings of ASD - ASD - CAST - Autism

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

Authors reveal no financial conflicts of interest related to the current work.


FUNDING

SRP is a stockholder, and the President and Chief Executive Officer of Somnogen Canada Inc., a Canadian corporation. He declares that he has no competing interests that might be perceived to influence the content of this article. This affiliation of SRP with Somnogen Canada Inc., a Canadian Corporation, does not alter the authors’ adherence to Nature and Science of Sleep. SRP has received royalty support from for his role as an editor-in-chief and/or an editor of various academic volumes. All remaining authors declare that they have no proprietary, financial, professional or other personal interest of any nature in any product, service and/or company that could be construed or considered to be a potential conflict of interest that might have influenced the views expressed in this paper.


ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.




Publication History

Received: 03 July 2020

Accepted: 16 October 2020

Article published online:
30 November 2023

© 2021. Brazilian Sleep Association. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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