Like food and drink, sleep is a vital part of a child's development and daily normal function. But some kids are deprived of critical sleep that they need to grow healthy and strong. Sleep disorder of night terrors typically occurs in children aged 3-12 years, with a peak onset in children aged 3½ years.
Sleep is classified as either rapid eye movement (REM), or non-rapid eye movement (non-REM). Non-REM sleep is sub-divided into 4 stages. During the transition from stage 3 to stage 4 of non-REM sleep, night terrors occur. It approximately begins at 90 minutes after the kid falls asleep. The much more common nightmares, on the other hand, occur during REM sleep.
Night terrors are usually frequent recurrent episodes of intense crying and fear during sleep. During such episode, it may be difficult to arouse the child from sleep. Statistics show that about 1-6% of young boys and girls experience night terrors. This type of sleep disorder affect kids of all races and usually resolves when they reached the age of adolescence.
Causes of night terrors can be a stressful life event, fever, sleep deprivation, and/or medications that affect the central nervous system. Children experiencing night terrors may also exhibit symptoms of increased heart rate (Tachycardia), increased breathing rate (Tachypnea), or sweating during episodes.
About 90 minutes after falling asleep, the child sits up in bed and screams. The child may appear awake but is usually confused, disoriented, and unresponsive to stimuli. The child does not acknowledge the presence of the parents and usually does respond to comforting by the parents. They usually do not recall a dream after a night terror episode, and they usually do not remember the episode the next morning.
Night terror episodes last 1-2 minutes, but they may last up to 30 minutes before the child relaxes and returns to normal sleep.
Parents are always concerned about their children's sleep disorders. Half of all children develop a disrupted sleep pattern serious enough to warrant a physician's attention. In children younger than 3½ years, peak frequency of night terrors is at least 1 episode per week while in older children, peak frequency of night terrors is 1-2 episodes per month.
If your child seems to be experiencing sleep disorder, an evaluation by the child's pediatrician may be useful. During this evaluation, the pediatrician may also be able to exclude other possible disorders that might cause night terrors.
If other disorders are suspected, additional tests may be useful to exclude them:
An electro-encephalogram (EEG), which is a test to measure brain activity, may be performed if a seizure disorder is suspected.
Polysomnography (a combination of tests used to check for adequate breathing while asleep) may be done if a breathing disorder is suspected.
CT scans and MRIs are usually not necessary but may also be used as additional screening methods.
Parents might take the following precautions at home:
Make the child's room safe to try to prevent the child from being injured during an episode.
Eliminate all sources of sleep disturbance.
Maintain a consistent bedtime routine and wake-up time.