Factors Related to Sleep Disturbances Among Children with Epilepsy

Backgroundː To calculate the proportion of sleep disturbances in children with epilepsy and analyze which of the following factors are associated with sleep disturbances in children with epilepsy: age, gender, seizure type, seizure frequency, type of AED, and number of aeds. Methods : This study was conducted using an observational analytic research method with a cross-sectional approach in children with epilepsy at Prof. Dr. R.D. Kandou Hospital Manado in the time span of December 2023 to March 2024. Inclusion criteria were age 1 to 18 years, epilepsy patients, and parents agreed to participate by signing informed consent. Exclusion criteria were autism and other psychiatric disorders. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 26.0. Results : This study included 36 children with a mean age range of 8.92 years (±4.87 years). There were 3 factors that showed a significant relationship with sleep disorders, seizure type (OR = 9.231 (95% CI 1.03: 83.3); p = 0.031) and number of seizures (OR = 11 (95% CI 1.2: 99 .1); p = 0.025), number of anti-epileptic drugs (p 0.0032). It was found that the number of seizures and type of seizure were independent risk factors (p<0.05). Conclusions : In this study 64% of children with epilepsy experienced sleep disturbances, which were linked to seizure type and frequency. Future research is needed to explore additional factors like sleep hygiene, socioeconomics, and co-sleeping that could contribute to sleep disorders in these children.