Sleep patterns, problems, and ecology in young children born preterm and full-term and their mothers

Abstract Background Previous studies of sleep patterns and problems in preterm infants compared to full-terms infants have yielded mixed results, with little known about sleep ecology. The aims of this study were to compare sleep patterns, sleep problems, and sleep ecology across developmental stages (birth to 36 months) in preterm (3 or more weeks early) infants and toddlers to those born full-term, in addition to their mothers’ sleep. Methods Mothers of 834 young children in Brazil (ages 0-35.9 months), half preterm and half full-term (matched for sex and chronological age), completed the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Results Across the entire sample, preterm and full-term infants were similar for most sleep parameters, including sleep onset latency, number and duration of night awakenings, and sleep duration, as well as sleep ecology parameters, including falling asleep independently and sleep location. However, preterm infants were more likely to be held to initiate sleep, given a bottle to resume sleep after waking, and less likely to be breast fed to resume sleep after waking. Mothers of preterm infants, however, were more likely to report a parent-perceived sleep problem, although maternal-perceived confidence in managing child sleep and bedtime difficulty were similar. Finally, maternal sleep parameters were similar between groups. Conclusions Overall, these results indicate that sleep patterns, sleep problems, and sleep ecology among preterm infants and toddlers and their mothers are largely similar to those of full-term infants and toddlers and their mothers, even within the first few months.