Sleepwalking
Sleepwalking

Sleepwalking and children

Alternative Names:
Somnambulism

Information:


Question:
Is sleepwalking normal for children?

Answer:
About 1 out of 10 school aged children sleepwalk at least once. Sleepwalking is often triggered by disruption in regular sleep patterns or a fever. Sleepwalking is usually outgrown by early adolescence. Unlike in adults, childhood sleepwalking is usually benign in terms of psychologic conditions. Rarely, it can be due to temporal lobe epilepsy.

Avoid awakening someone who is sleepwalking. (This frightens the person.) Simply steer the person back to bed and ensure that they are safe. Try to stay with a bedtime routine to help minimize the problem.


Review Date: 8/28/2001
Reviewed By: Elizabeth Hait, M.D., Department of Pediatrics, Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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