Background
Sleep disorders are common in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Little is known, however, about sleep in adult patients.
Objectives
Cross-sectional analysis of subjective sleep-related parameters in patients with autism spectrum disorder and healthy control participants.
Materials and methods
Twenty-nine patients with autism spectrum disorder and 50 healthy control participants were investigated using a questionnaire battery and sleep diaries. All analyses were controlled for depression and anxiety.
Results
Patients with autism spectrum disorder had more severe insomnia symptoms, stronger dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes about sleep, an increased sleep effort, and a higher cognitive arousal compared to the control group. In addition to this, the sleep diary data showed earlier bedtimes in those with autism spectrum disorder.
Conclusions
In patients with autism spectrum disorder, sleep onset and sleep maintenance difficulties seem to be accompanied by cognitive alterations that are typically observed in insomnia patients. In light of this, it appears to be worthwhile to investigate the efficacy of cognitive behavioral treatment for insomnia in this patient group.