The Effect of Sleep Disorders on Blood Sugar in Children With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common metabolic disorder. The hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) test is a simple laboratory test that shows the average amount of blood sugar in the last 3 months. Studies have shown that sleep is important in controlling blood sugar levels, so that sleep deprivation can reduce glucose tolerance. Lack of sleep and sleep disorders are also predictors of DM.

Given the contradictory information about the effect of sleep on blood sugar, the impact of various factors in the process of DM, including the lifestyle of patients, and the limited number of studies in this field in Iran, we decided to investigate the effect of sleep disorders on blood sugar control in people with type 1 DM.

This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was performed on children with type 1 DM referred to the diabetes clinic. Their HbA1c levels were recorded in a checklist from the patient’s last test recorded in their files, and the standard Pittsburg sleep quality index (PSQI) was completed to assess their sleep disorders with the help of the child’s parents. Achieving a score higher than 5 in the whole questionnaire means poor sleep quality. After collecting data, they were analyzed in SPSS software, version 21.

A total of 200 children with type 1 DM were studied, of whom 119(59.5%) were boys, 81(40.5%) were girls. Also, 79 children (39.5%) were less than 1 year old, 67(33.5%) were 1 to 2 years old and 54 were more than 3 years old. Also, 104 children (52.6%) had no sleep disorders, while 69(32.1%) had moderate, 20(11.6%) had severe, and 7(3.7%) had very severe sleep disorders. Their Mean±SD age was 10.86±4.68 years, and HbA1c level was 9.64±3.35 mmol/mol.

This study showed that the prevalence of sleep disorders based on the PSQI was approximately 50%. There was a significant relationship between elevated HbA1c and the prevalence of sleep disorders.