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. 2023 Dec:48:101091.
doi: 10.1016/j.spen.2023.101091. Epub 2023 Oct 3.

Current Considerations in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Sleep-Wake Disorders in Children

Rochelle M Witt  1 , Kelly C Byars  2 , Kristina Decker  2 , Thomas J Dye  1 , Jessica M Riley  3 , Danielle Simmons  2 , David F Smith  4
Affiliations

Current Considerations in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Circadian Rhythm Sleep-Wake Disorders in Children

Rochelle M Witt et al. Semin Pediatr Neurol. 2023 Dec.

Abstract

Circadian Rhythm Sleep-Wake Disorders (CRSWDs) are important sleep disorders whose unifying feature is a mismatch between the preferred or required times for sleep and wakefulness and the endogenous circadian drives for these. Their etiology, presentation, and treatment can be different in pediatric patients as compared to adults. Evaluation of these disorders must be performed while viewed through the lens of a patient's comorbid conditions. Newer methods of assessment promise to provide greater diagnostic clarity and critical insights into how circadian physiology affects overall health and disease states. Effective clinical management of CRSWDs is multimodal, requiring an integrated approach across disciplines. Therapeutic success depends upon appropriately timed nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic interventions. A better understanding of the genetic predispositions for and causes of CRSWDs has led to novel clinical opportunities for diagnosis and improved therapeutics.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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