Prevalence of sleep-talking in childhood

Brain Dev. 1980;2(4):353-7. doi: 10.1016/s0387-7604(80)80047-7.

Abstract

This report is on the prevalence of somniloquy, as revealed by a populational survey of 2,022 schoolchildren aged from 3 to 10 years. Data were collected by means of a multiple choice questionnaire aimed at the investigation of sleep characteristics (sleep characteristics questionnaire-SCQ) and submitted to statistical analysis. The objective was to detect the prevalence of sleep-talk and influence of age, sex and socioeconomic class on its frequency. About half the children of all ages presented somniloquy at least once a year, but less than 10% presented it everyday. No clearmarked correlation with age, sex or socioeconomic class was found. These results do not confirm the generally accepted notion that there is a higher prevalence in the beginning of the first decade of life and suggest also the necessity of further quantitative and objective assessment of this phenomenon.

MeSH terms

  • Brazil
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Sex Factors
  • Sleep Wake Disorders / epidemiology*
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Surveys and Questionnaires