Sleepwalking and Children
Alternate Names : Somnambulism, Noctambulation
Sleepwalking is a sleep disorder
in which sleeping and waking states are combined. The child partially
wakes from deep sleep and carries out some type of activity. Often this is
walking, but other detailed activities may be performed. A child has no
memory of the event afterward.
What is going on in the body?
Sleepwalking is one type of fairly common, related
sleep disorders in children. This group includes:
night terrors
primary nocturnal enuresis,
which means bedwetting that is not related to a physical problem
sleeptalking
Sleepwalking is often combined with sleeptalking.
Episodes occur at a certain point in the sleep cycle. This is usually
70 to 120 minutes after sleep begins.
What are the causes and risks of the condition?
Fifteen percent of healthy children between the ages of 5 and
15 years sleepwalk. Sleepwalking is more common in boys than in girls.
It is more likely to occur if a child has had night terrors as a preschooler.
A child is also at higher risk if others in the family have had
sleep disorders.
Being overly tired or stressed
may also affect the child's sleep pattern.
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