title: Pediatric prescribing practices for clonidine and other pharmacologic agents for children with sleep disturbance.
abstract: The prescription rates of clonidine have risen dramatically and the extent to which these increases can be attributed to treatment of sleep disturbance is unknown. Surveys were mailed to 800 pediatricians across four geographically diverse states to assess prescribing practices specific to sleep disturbance. Ninety-six percent of the respondents treated sleep disturbance. More than one third of the sample reported using clonidine specifically for sleep disturbance including sleep onset, sleep schedule, nighttime awakening, and early morning awakening problems and parasomnias. Clonidine ranked second only to antihistamines as the most commonly used medication for treating sleep disturbance.
authors.affiliation: Munroe-Meyer Institute, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA.
authors.forename: Connie J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Schnoes
authors.forename: Brett R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Kuhn
authors.forename: Elizabeth F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Workman
authors.forename: Cynthia R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Ellis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000328:Adult; D001521:Behavior Therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003000:Clonidine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006634:Histamine H1 Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010372:Pediatrics; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; D006634:Histamine H1 Antagonists; D003000:Clonidine