Are sleep problems under-recognised in general practice?
Blunden S; Lushington K; Lorenzen B; Ooi T; Fung F; Kennedy D University of South Australia, Centre for Sleep Research, 5th Floor, Basil Hetzel Institute, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woodville Road, Woodville, SA 5011, Australia. sblunden_sleepclinic@hotmail.com AIMS: To evaluate the frequency of sleep problems in Australian children aged 4.5-16.5 years, and to determine whether the frequency of sleep problems on questionnaire predicts the reporting of sleep problems at consultation. METHODS: Parents of 361 children (aged 4.5-16.5 years) attending their general practitioner for “sick” visits were asked to assess their child’s sleep over the previous six months using the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children, from which six sleep “disorder” factors and a total sleep problem score were obtained. RESULTS: The percentage of children with a total sleep problem score indicative of clinical significance (T score >70 or >95th centile) was 24.6% (89/361). Despite this high frequency, parents only
