Sleep of Children with High Potentialities: A Polysomnographic Study

The involvement of sleep in cognitive functioning is well known, but only a few studies have examined objective sleep parameters in children with high intellectual potential (HP). The main objective of this study was to compare sleep characteristics of 33 children with high intellectual potentialities (HP) (median 10 years old, 64% of boys) compared to 25 controls (median 11 years old, 64% of boys) and assess the difference between children with a homogeneous vs. a heterogeneous intelligence quotient (IQ) (i.e., a difference ≥15 points between verbal and non-verbal IQ). All children underwent a one-night polysomnography, an evaluation of intellectual quotient (IQ) and filled standardized questionnaires. Using non-parametric tests to compare groups’ characteristics, we found that children with HP had more heterogeneous IQ, more rapid eyes movement (REM) sleep and tended to have less stage 1 sleep than controls. They also had more insomnia and sleep complaints. The high amount of REM sleep in children with HP could be advantageous for learning and could partially explain their gift. This study highlights the necessity of investigating sleep disorders in children with HP during clinical routine and reinforces the hypothesis of the involvement of nocturnal sleep, and especially REM sleep, in daytime cognition and behavior.