Natalie Urfer-Maurer1, Serge Brand2, Edith Holsboer-Trachsler3, Alexander Grob1, Peter Weber4, Sakari Lemola5. 1. University of Basel, Department of Psychology, Basel, Switzerland. 2. University of Basel, Psychiatric Clinics, Center for Affective, Stress, and Sleep Disorders, Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, Division of Sport and Psychosocial Health, Basel, Switzerland; Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (KUMS), Sleep Disorders Research Center, Kermanshah, Iran; Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences (KUMS), Substance Abuse Prevention Research Center, Kermanshah, Iran. 3. University of Basel, Psychiatric Clinics, Center for Affective, Stress, and Sleep Disorders, Basel, Switzerland. 4. University of Basel, University Children's Hospital Basel, Division of Neuropediatrics and Developmental Medicine, Basel, Switzerland. 5. University of Warwick, Department of Psychology, Coventry, United Kingdom. Electronic address: s.lemola@warwick.ac.uk.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Parents are often the first to report children's sleep difficulties. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the accuracy of parent reports by examining the correspondence of maternal and paternal reports of children's sleep with in-home electroencephalography (EEG) sleep assessment and sleep diary reports. METHODS: A total of 143 children (57 formerly very preterm born children) aged 7-12 years underwent one night of in-home sleep-EEG; mothers and fathers reported children's sleep-related behavior by using the German version of the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire, and children and parents together completed a sleep diary of children's sleep. RESULTS: Less EEG-derived total sleep time (TST) was associated with increased mother questionnaire reports of sleep duration problems, while less sleep efficiency (SE) and longer sleep onset latency (SOL) were associated with increased mother questionnaire reports of sleep onset delay. For fathers, only longer SOL was related to increased father questionnaire reports of sleep onset delay. The abovementioned associations did not change with children's increasing age and did not differ for boys and girls. More parent questionnaire reports of sleep duration problems, sleep onset delay, and night wakings were related to shorter diary reports of sleep duration, increased sleep latency, and more nocturnal awakenings, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Mother questionnaire reports of children's sleep corresponded moderately with objective measures of TST, SE, and SOL assessed with in-home sleep-EEG. Both mother and father questionnaire reports of children's sleep duration problems, sleep onset delay, and night wakings were related to diary reports of children's sleep.
OBJECTIVE: Parents are often the first to report children's sleep difficulties. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the accuracy of parent reports by examining the correspondence of maternal and paternal reports of children's sleep with in-home electroencephalography (EEG) sleep assessment and sleep diary reports. METHODS: A total of 143 children (57 formerly very preterm born children) aged 7-12 years underwent one night of in-home sleep-EEG; mothers and fathers reported children's sleep-related behavior by using the German version of the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire, and children and parents together completed a sleep diary of children's sleep. RESULTS: Less EEG-derived total sleep time (TST) was associated with increased mother questionnaire reports of sleep duration problems, while less sleep efficiency (SE) and longer sleep onset latency (SOL) were associated with increased mother questionnaire reports of sleep onset delay. For fathers, only longer SOL was related to increased father questionnaire reports of sleep onset delay. The abovementioned associations did not change with children's increasing age and did not differ for boys and girls. More parent questionnaire reports of sleep duration problems, sleep onset delay, and night wakings were related to shorter diary reports of sleep duration, increased sleep latency, and more nocturnal awakenings, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Mother questionnaire reports of children's sleep corresponded moderately with objective measures of TST, SE, and SOL assessed with in-home sleep-EEG. Both mother and father questionnaire reports of children's sleep duration problems, sleep onset delay, and night wakings were related to diary reports of children's sleep.