Gender differences in sleep, fatigue, and daytime activity in a pediatric oncology sample receiving dexamethasone.
OBJECTIVE
To examine gender differences in sleep, fatigue, and daytime activity in a sample of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).


METHODS
Participants included 88 children in maintenance treatment for ALL (34 girls; 54 boys). Participants wore an actigraph for 10 consecutive days (5 days pre-dexamethasone and 5 days during dexamethasone administration). Fatigue instruments were also administered.


RESULTS
Girls napped more and had less fragmented night sleep than boys did. Wake time after sleep onset was sensitive to dexamethasone administration, revealing a differential direction of response for girls and boys. No gender differences were observed for subjective fatigue or daytime activity in the total sample.


CONCLUSIONS
Our preliminary findings support gender differences in the sleep of children with cancer after controlling for differences in age, treatment, and risk group. Future research that focuses on the etiology of gender differences and developing interventions will help clarify the clinical application of our findings.
Sanford
Stacy D
SD
St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. Stacy.Sanford@stjude.org
Okuma
James O
JO
Pan
Jianmin
J
Srivastava
Deo Kumar
DK
West
Nancy
N
Farr
Lynne
L
Hinds
Pamela S
PS
D000293:Adolescent; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003907:Dexamethasone / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005221:Fatigue / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D017286:Polysomnography; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D003907:Dexamethasone