Sleep problems among children with intellectual disability

Authors

  • Muhammad Shamsul Alam Retired Chief Medical Officer, Bangladesh Power Development Board, Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Subrina Yeasmin Binni Associate Professor, Department of Transfusion Medicine, Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College, Bogura, Bangladesh
  • Muhammad Zillur Rahman Khan Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College, Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Zoha Mohammad Meherwar Hossain Associate Professor (Retired), Department of Community Medicine, Jashore Medical College, Jashore, Bangladesh
  • Farah Tuba Founder, LATIM, Organization of child education Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Md Arifuzzaman Registrar of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Keywords:

Intellectual disability, Sleep problems, Children’s Sleep Habit Questionnaire, Children with intellectual disability

Abstract

Sleep problems are frequently found among the children, and it is more among the intellectually disabled children than those who are not intellectually disabled. This study was aimed to assess the sleep problems of intellectually disabled children. It was a cross-sectional descriptive study. The study period was from February 2019 to December 2019. The study was conducted in two organizations and two schools of Dhaka city. Data collection instrument was, ‘Children’s Sleep Habit Questionnaire’ developed by Judith A. Owens, Anthony Spirito and Melissa Mc Guinn. It was translated into Bangla for convenience. It was distributed among the parents of the intellectually disabled and non-intellectually disabled children and later collected from them having the answers. The sample size was in total 148, of which 74 were intellectually disabled and 74 were non-intellectually disabled children. The sampling technique was a purposive one and data was analyzed manually. Among the non-intellectually disabled children sleep problems were found 25%, whereas among the intellectually disabled children it was found more than 95%. It was statistically highly significant (p value was p<0.00001). This study concludes that intellectually disabled children suffer more from sleep problems than the non-intellectually disabled children. So due medical and psycho-social care and proper sleep hygiene should be arranged for them.

Bang J Psychiatry 2026;40(1): 15-18

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Published

2026-10-12

Issue

Vol. 40 No. 1 (2026)

Section

Original Articles

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Copyright (c) 2026 Bangladesh Association of Psychiatrists

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How to Cite

Alam, M. S. ., Binni, S. Y. ., Khan, M. Z. R. ., Hossain, Z. M. M. ., Tuba, F. ., & Arifuzzaman, M. . (2026). Sleep problems among children with intellectual disability. Bangladesh Journal of Psychiatry, 40(1), 15-18. https://doi.org/10.3329/bjpsy.v40i1.93796