Sleep Apnea
In The News
Headache linked to
sleep problems in
children
- August 2006
Researchers at the
Mayo Clinic have
found that frequent
headaches in children
appear to be
associated with sleep
problems.
More than two-thirds
of children studied
who suffer from
chronic daily
headache also
experience sleep
disturbance,
especially delay in
sleep onset.
For children with
episodic headaches,
one-fifth had sleep
problems.
" What's novel in our
study is the finding
that a high
percentage of
patients with
headache have sleep
disturbance," says
Kenneth Mack, senior
study investigator. "
The number of
patients who have
headaches and also
sleep disturbance
surprised us. They
also have the same
sleep disturbance: a
delay in sleep
onset."
The researchers
undertook this study
to scientifically
study their
observation in the
clinic that many
children suffer from
both headaches and
sleep problems.
" We've continually
seen that children
with headaches are
poor sleepers and
that they're fatigued
because they have
poor sleep," says
Mack. " We've known
that when people
don't get enough
sleep they get more
headaches, but we'd
not appreciated the
frequency of sleep
disturbance with
chronic daily
headache."
The study involved a
retrospective chart
review of 100
children ages 6 to 17
with chronic daily
headache ( headache
present 15 or more
days a month for
three months or more
) and 100 children in
the same age category
with episodic
headache ( headache
that occurs with less
frequency than
chronic daily
headache ). In
addition to sleep
onset delay, sleep
problems found in
children studied
included awakening
during the night or
too early in the
morning, or not
feeling refreshed
after sleep.
The investigators do
not yet know which
problem comes first,
sleep problems or
headache.
In some children
sleep problems come
first, and in others,
headache is first. "
They feed on each
other: sleep problems
make the headaches
worse, and the
headaches make the
sleep problems
worse," says Mack. "
Also, the worse the
headaches, the more
likely children are
to have sleep
problems, and vice
versa. They could
have a common cause,
or one problem could
be an early sign of
the other."
Treatment must be
simultaneous for both
conditions, using
medicine and
non-medicine
approaches, says
Mack. " It's going to
be hard to control
the headaches till
you get the sleep
problems under
control either with
medication or
non-medication
treatment," he says.
Key non-medication
treatments include
attention to
maintaining routine
in the child's
schedule and
developing good sleep
hygiene, according to
Lenora Lehwald, study
investigator. "
Educating the patient
and family on things
like good sleep
habits may in and of
itself help to
improve the sleep
quality and thus the
headaches in the long
run," she says.
Lehwald explains that
good sleep hygiene
for children involves
what seem to be very
basic and simple
practices in the
evening routine. "A
child should use his
bedroom for just the
types of activities
that would be
sedating and
relaxing," she says.
" TVs, video games,
things that are
exciting and get the
child interested,
motivated and
activated, should not
be in the bedroom.
Also, it's important
for children to have
a routine for calming
down and preparing
for sleep the last
hour they plan to be
awake. They should
choose activities
that make them
drowsy, like
reading."
If a child with both
headache and sleep
problems requires
medicine, Mack
prefers migraine
medication that also
helps with sleep
issues.
Age is one factor
that puts children at
risk for headache.
Teenagers have the
highest level of
risk, according to
Mack, which may be
partly due to a
higher stress level
for teens than for
younger children. He
also notes that a
typical teen needs
about 9.5 hours of
sleep per night, more
than most teens get.
Family history of
headache, time of
year and stress level
also appear to impact
headache risk, say
the researchers.
" Fall, when children
start school, is a
stressful time for
children, and it's
very much a time when
they will experience
more headache," says
Lehwald. " As school
lets up in the
summer, they seem to
have more
headache-free time.
So, that's a good
indicator that stress
has an impact on the
frequency and
severity of
children's
headaches."
From 10 to 20 percent
of children have
episodic headache.
Chronic daily
headache occurs in up
to 4 percent of girls
and up to 2 percent
of boys.
If you
think you or a
loved one may
have
symptoms of a
sleep disorder,
please
contact us
today.
Help
is available!
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