The Impact of Epilepsy on Sleep Characteristics in Epileptic Adolescents and their Caregivers

Objective. To investigate the sleep problems in epileptic adolescents and their caregivers. Methods. This observational case-control study included; 37 epileptic adolescents with their caregivers and 43 healthy age-matched adolescents with their caregivers. The Children's sleep habits questionnaire (CSHQ), DSM-V Level II sleep disorders scale For children, and Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to evaluate sleep habits, sleep problems, and psychometric properties of adolescents. DSM-V Sleep disorder scale for adults was used to evaluate the caregivers’ sleep problems. Results. Epileptic adolescents had higher sleep problem scores such as daytime sleepiness and overall sleep problems compared with healthy controls. The psychopathological symptoms such as conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and total behavior were also more frequent in epileptic adolescents. There was a nonsignificant increase in DSM-V Sleep Disturbance score in epileptic adolescents’ caregivers. The sleep onset delay had a significant negative correlation with total behavioral difficulties (r = -0.44, p<0.01), and emotional problems (r = -0.47, p < 0.05 ) in epileptic adolescents. The sleep duration was negatively correlated with conduct problems (r = -0.33, p<0.05),but positively correlated with prosocial score (r = 0.46, p < 0.01) in epileptic adolescents. The night waking was positively correlated with total behavioral difficulties (r = 0.35, p<0.05), and hyperactivity score (r = 0.38, p<0.05) in epileptic adolescents. Conclusions. Epileptic adolescents have more frequent sleep disturbances and maladaptive behaviors such as hyperactivity/inattention, and conduct problems compared with healthy control. Additionally, there are strong associations between sleep disturbances and behavioral problems in epileptic adolescents.
Keywords: adolescent, epilepsy, caregivers, sleep.