Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders

What we do

The Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital provides careful evaluation and close follow-up of children who are experiencing sleep disorders.

The center, established in 1978, has a unique level of experience: Much of the current knowledge of children’s natural sleep patterns—and the problems children can experience—was discovered here. In addition, our experts developed many of the clinical approaches that are now used generally to diagnose and manage these disorders.

Today, we continue to look for ways to improve the care we can provide. Some of issues we work on are outlined below.

A history of helping sleepless children

Richard Ferber, MD, founder and former director of the center, had a special focus on children who have trouble sleeping. He devoted his career to finding solutions for these children and their families, and is also known to many families through his popular book, Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems.

Caring for children with a wide range of sleep-related breathing disorders

When children have trouble breathing at night, it can cause behavioral and learning problems. What’s more, it now appears that in some cases these breathing disorders may have additional long-term medical consequences. So our team takes sleep apnea seriously: We carefully evaluate your child’s symptoms, talk with your family in-depth, and look for the best treatment plan for your child.

The respiratory and pulmonary disease specialists on our team also conduct a variety of clinical studies to learn more about what causes sleep apnea, how it affects children, and how best to treat it. 

Developing treatments for children with other conditions

Sometimes, underlying medical conditions can lead to serious sleep disturbances, and physicians at Boston Children’s are working to find treatments for these unique patients. One example is craniopharyngioma, a common childhood brain tumor. Unfortunately, treatments to fight these tumors often cause unwanted side effects, including sleep abnormalities.

A recent clinical study at Boston Children’s indicated that these children can develop problems with their circadian rhythms (sleep-wake cycles during the 24-hour day). The discovery is leading the researchers to look for ways to stimulate these sleep cycles and thus, they hope, to solve the children’s sleep problems. You can read more about this research in the Spring 2010 issue of Neural Networks (pdf), a research newsletter from the departments of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry at Boston Children’s.

Sweet dreams

5-year-old Elijah recently underwent a polysomnography (sleep study) here in the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders to determine the underlying cause of his unusual sleep pattern. Read about Elijah’s experience and what his father, Michael J. Cunningham, MD, FACS, otolaryngologist-in-chief at Boston Children’s Hospital, has to say about the results of the procedure in this Thriving blog post.

Answers to all your questions about sleep are located in the resources section.

Recent news

New book helps parents tackle their kids’ sleep problems

Twenty to thirty percent of children of all ages suffer from some form of sleep disturbance. In Successful Sleep Strategies for Kids, pediatric pulmonologist and sleep specialist Dennis Rosen, MD discusses the latest discoveries science has made in the field of sleep. Dr Rosen’s book is for sale through Amazon.com.

Infants, schedules and that so-called slippery road

Boston.com’s “Child Caring” blog answers a reader’s question about getting her baby on a consistent sleep and napping schedule. Boston Children’s Dennis Rosen, MD, provides insight. Read more here.

Extra sleep may improve kids' conduct

Reuters reports that letting kids sleep a little longer may help improve their behavior and make them less restless in school, according to a new study. Boston Children’s Umakanth Khatwa, MD, notes that it surprising was how little sleep extension could affect functioning on a day-to-day basis. Read the article.

No, you won’t cause your child irreparable harm by teaching him better sleep habits

Huffington Post reports on better sleeping habits for children. Boston Children’s Dennis Rosen, MD, shares insight on the topic. Read the article here.