Sleep Quality in Autism from Adolescence to Old Age

Abstract

Background: Sleep problems are common in autism from early childhood. Although research suggests that poor sleep continues at least into early middle age, the pattern of sleep problems has rarely been characterized beyond childhood. The aim of this study was to examine sleep quality from adolescence to old age in autistic individuals as compared with age-matched non-autistic comparison groups from the general population. Methods: Participants ranged from 15 to 80 years; there were 297 participants in the autistic group (mean [M]age = 34.36 years, standard deviation [SD] = 15.24), and the comparison group had 233 participants (Mage = 33.01 years, SD = 15.53). Sleep quality, sleep onset latenc..