Sleep‐disordered breathing and cognitive functioning in preschool children with and without Down syndrome

Abstract

The findings in the TD group support our hypotheses. We recommend that sleep problems are screened for and treated as even mild SDB may prompt poorer cognition and behaviour. For children with DS, we expect that multiple factors in this complex syndrome mask or mediate the association between sleep and cognitive development and tighter controls are necessary to uncover effects of sleep. We propose longitudinal studies as a necessary tool to assess the precise impact of sleep on cognitive development in accounting for individual differences in DS.

Sleep problems in Korean children with Down syndrome and parental quality of life

“…; Bull & Committee on Genetics ; Chamseddin et al ., ; Esbensen & Hoffman ; Goffinski et al . ; Joyce & Dimitriou ; Kuroda et al . ; Maris et al .…”

“…Sleep is essential for healthy growth and development in children (Joyce & Dimitriou ), as it gives the body a chance to conserve energy, restore its normal processes, promote physical growth and support development (Carter et al . ).…”

“…Children who do not get enough sleep are at increased risk for negative consequences such as irritability, behavioural problems, learning difficulties and poor academic performance (Carter et al . ; Joyce & Dimitriou ). Children with DS are particularly susceptible to the negative effects of sleep problems than are typically developing children because they often have co‐occurring conditions, such as congenital heart disease (Churchill et al .…”

“…poor school performance, limited social interactions and impaired activities of daily living) that may contribute to lower quality of life (QOL; Ebensen & Hoffman ; Esbensen et al . ; Joyce & Dimitriou ; Lal et al . ; Lukowski & Milojevich ; Sedky et al .…”

Sleep in Down Syndrome

“…The high prevalence of sleep disorders during childhood may make children with DS particularly susceptible to ill effects during critical periods of cognitive development. Small cross sectional studies have found deficits in IQ [6], cognitive and behavioural function [74][75][76][77] and accomplishment of daily activities [78] in children with DS and co-existing sleep problems, suggesting an association between poor sleep and these deficits in this group. The age range evaluated in these studies has varied with some groups concentrating on pre-school children with DS [75][76][77] and others examining older children [6,74,78].…”