This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Adolescence

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

There is little change in sleep architecture during puberty - principally just a continuation of the general sleep changes that accompany aging ie less slow-wave sleep overall, less stage 4 sleep in particular, and a reduced overall average sleep time. There are fewer night-wakenings and less REM/non-REM sleep cycles. The number of cycles decreases from about 7 pre-pubertally to about 4 in early adulthood.

Two features that are often a feature of adolescent sleep patterns are (1):

  • mid-afternoon drowsiness
  • difficulty in rousing in the mornings

The mid-afternoon drowsiness may be apparent in adolescents even when adequate sleep is allowed at night; and has nothing to do with heavy lunches. Difficulty in rousing in the mornings may be related to lack of adequate night-time sleep. Often adolescents are chronically sleep deprived and are likely to take opportunities to make up for lost night-time sleep.

Reference:

  • Carskadon M. Determinants of daytime sleepiness: adolescent development, extended and restricted sleep. PhD Thesis. Stanford University. Stanford, California. 1979.

Create an account to add page annotations

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.