Adolescent Sleep: Challenges and Solutions for Pediatric Primary Care

Association of Sleep Duration and Weekend Catch-Up Sleep with Suicidal Ideation among Adolescents with Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a prevalent allergic disease in children that often causes sleep disturbance and which is associated with diminished quality of life and heightened susceptibility to depression and suicidality. In this study, we investigate the relationship between weekend catch-up sleep (WCUS) and mental health in a sample of 71,434 adolescents with AD and 221,057 without AD using multivariate logistic regression analysis. We hypothesized that adolescents with AD experience shorter total and daytime sleep due to pruritus, with compensatory longer WCUS. We found that the lifetime prevalence of AD was 24.4%, and that adolescents with AD slept less overall, with significantly shorter weekday and weekend sleep durations but longer weekend catch-up sleep (WCUS). Sleep dissatisfaction was markedly higher in the AD group. Interestingly, our results suggest that prolonged WCUS is a protective factor against suicidal ideation in adolescents with AD. The study highlights the importance of addressing sleep patterns in adolescents with AD to enhance mental health. Overall, our findings indicate a need for increased awareness and intervention strategies to ensure sufficient sleep and reduce the risk of suicidal ideation in this population.

Strategies in the Management of Adolescent Obesity

Purpose of Review

We review the current options to manage adolescent obesity which include nutrition, physical activity, behavior modification, sleep management, pharmacotherapy and surgery. Since lifestyle interventions alone are often not effective in adolescents, a multi-disciplinary treatment approach is necessary in management.

Recent Findings

Medications (often used off-label) and metabolic/bariatric surgery are effective treatment strategies to treat adolescents with severe obesity.

Summary

The use of pharmacotherapy and surgery is limited due to lack of pediatric obesity tertiary care centers. With more centers, the treatment of adolescent obesity will improve and aid to decrease the prevalence of adult obesity.