Compared to full term , premature infants exhibit significant differences in sleep structure , which mainly include differences in electroencephalographic spectral values , in total sleep time and in arousal threshold .
Furthermore , prematurity seems to be a risk factor of sleep breathing disorders in childhood and adolescence .
Conclusions The alterations in sleep patterns are an outcome of prematurity ( immaturity of nervous system ) as well as of postnatal factors and comorbidities .
Sleep problems in this population of infants seems to be a missing piece of the puzzle of impaired neurodevelopment .
Background Sleep undergoes changes from birth to adulthood , while sleep disorders are associated with various cognitive deficiencies in childhood .
In parallel , prematurity is known to predispose to poor neurodevelopmental outcomes .
Our aim is to provide literature data about factors influencing sleep in the premature infants and sleep outcomes in this population .
Behavioral Observation Differentiates the Effects of an Intervention to Promote Sleep in Premature Infants: A Pilot Study
Purpose : Sleep and ongoing cycling of sleep states are required for neurosensory processing , learning , and brain plasticity . Many aspects of neonatal intensive care environments such as h and ling for routine and invasive procedures , bright lighting , and noise can create stress , disrupt behavior , and interfere with sleep in prematurely born infants . The study empirically investigated whether a 30-minute observation of infant sleep states and behavior could differentiate an intervention to promote sleep in premature infants with feeding difficulties relative to conventional care ( st and ard positioning , st and ard crib mattress [ SP ] ) . We included an intervention to determine the ability of the method to discriminate treatments and generate a benchmark for future improvements . The intervention , a conformational positioner ( CP ) , is contoured around the infant to provide customized containment and boundaries . To more fully verify the 30-minute observational sleep results , st and ard polysomnography was conducted simultaneously and sleep outcomes for the 2 modalities were compared . Subjects : In a r and omized crossover clinical trial , 25 infants , 31.5 ± 0.6 weeks ' gestational age and 38.4 ± 0.6 weeks at the study , with gastrointestinal conditions or general feeding difficulties used each intervention during an overnight neonatal intensive care unit sleep study . Methods : Infant sleep states and behaviors were observed during two 30-minute periods — that is , on the positioner and mattress — using the naturalistic observation of newborn behavior . Two certified developmental care nurses assessed sleep state , self-regulatory , and stress behaviors during 2-minute intervals and summed over 30 minutes . Sleep characteristics  from st and ard polysomnography  were measured at the time of behavior observations . Results : Infants on CP spent significantly less time in alert , active awake , or crying states by observation compared with SP . Surgical subjects spent more time awake , active awake , or crying and displayed a higher number of behavior state changes than the nonsurgical infants . The percentage of time in observed deep sleep and quiet sleep was correlated with both percentage sleep efficiency ( r = 0.78 ) and fewer state shifts per hour ( r = −0.65 ) from electroencephalogram ( EEG ) . Sleep efficiency by EEG was greater on CP versus SP . Conclusions : The CP enabled sleep compared with the st and ard mattress ( SP ) over 30-minute observation periods . Sleep status from behavioral observation was verified by st and ard EEG-based sleep techniques . Behavioral observation of sleep states may be a useful strategy for measuring the effectiveness of strategies to facilitate sleep in premature infants . Surgical subjects may benefit from additional interventions to promote sleep
Compared to full term , premature infants exhibit significant differences in sleep structure , which mainly include differences in electroencephalographic spectral values , in total sleep time and in arousal threshold .
Furthermore , prematurity seems to be a risk factor of sleep breathing disorders in childhood and adolescence .
Conclusions The alterations in sleep patterns are an outcome of prematurity ( immaturity of nervous system ) as well as of postnatal factors and comorbidities .
Sleep problems in this population of infants seems to be a missing piece of the puzzle of impaired neurodevelopment .
Background Sleep undergoes changes from birth to adulthood , while sleep disorders are associated with various cognitive deficiencies in childhood .
In parallel , prematurity is known to predispose to poor neurodevelopmental outcomes .
Our aim is to provide literature data about factors influencing sleep in the premature infants and sleep outcomes in this population .