Association of sleep disorders with subfoveal choroidal thickness in preschool children

Abstract

Abstract Objective To explore the association between sleep disorders and subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) in preschool children. Methods In this population-based cross-sectional study, children aged 60–72 months were measured for SFCT using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and for sleep disorders using the Chinese version of Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to assess the association between sleep disorders and SFCT. Results A total of 1337 children (mean (SD) age: 66.88 (3.41) months) were included in the analyses. In multivariable linear analysis, a higher total CSHQ score (indicating higher likelihood of sleep disorders) was associated with a thinner subfoveal choroid (beta, −0.070; 95% CI, −0.141 to −0.001; P = 0.046). When each of eight CSHQ subscale scores was analysed by the multivariable model, only the Daytime Sleepiness subscale score was negatively associated with the SFCT (beta, −0.115; 95% CI, −0.183 to −0.046; P = 0.001). The children with clinically significant daytime sleepiness (n = 364, 27.2%) had significantly thinner subfoveal choroid than other children (295.47 vs. 308.52 μm, P = 0.007). Conclusions Only daytime sleepiness was significantly associated with SFCT in preschool children in this study. The potential relationship between sleep disorders during childhood and children’s ocular development needs further research.