Sleep Disorders Clinic
The Cincinnati Children's Sleep Disorders Clinic helps children with a range of sleep problems. Our team of sleep medicine experts can treat common sleep disorders as well as complex and rare sleep disorders.
Children who come to our Sleep Disorders Clinic also have access to sleep specialists from our Sleep Center. Each specialist has a different area of expertise, which means we’ll be able to find the right expert and treatment for your child’s specific needs.
At Cincinnati Children's, we offer:
- Access to a range of sleep study tests, including specialized sleep studies for children with movement disorders
- Personalized treatment plans tailored to your child's specific needs
- Research studies and clinical trial programs that provide the latest treatment options for certain sleep disorders
- Simplified and coordinated care, so you don't have to worry about managing appointments and specialist schedules
Conditions We Treat
The Sleep Disorders Clinic helps children and adolescents with a variety of sleep problems. Our team can treat:
- Hypersomnolence disorders
- Narcolepsy Type 1 (narcolepsy with cataplexy)
- Narcolepsy Type 2 (narcolepsy without cataplexy)
- Idiopathic hypersomnia
- Sleep-related movement disorders
- Restless leg syndrome (RLS)
- Periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD)
- Restless sleep disorder
- Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) parasomnias
- Night terrors or sleep terrors
- Sleep walking
- Sleep eating
- Rapid eye movement (REM) parasomnias
- Nightmare disorder
- REM sleep behavior disorder
- Insomnia
- Circadian rhythm disorders
We also treat kids with sleep problems related to other medical or developmental conditions, such as autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
What to Expect
If your child has a sleep problem, your pediatrician may refer you to our Sleep Center for treatment. You can also contact our Sleep Center for a referral.
Once you're referred to the Sleep Center, we'll ask you to fill out an online questionnaire. This form will help us understand your child's health history and symptoms, so we know which specialists are best suited to treat your child.
Before your first visit to the Sleep Disorder Clinic, we’ll have you fill out another short survey about your child’s sleep symptoms. This survey will help us personalize the evaluation and treatment approach.
During your first visit, you'll meet with a doctor or an ARNP who specializes in sleep medicine. We’ll ask about your child’s medical and sleep history. We may recommend an overnight sleep study, which records your child’s sleep quality, breathing and any abnormal movements. The type of sleep study we recommend will depend on your child’s symptoms. Your child will stay overnight at our Sleep Laboratory for the sleep study.
In some cases, we may also ask your child to undergo some lab tests, such as blood work.
After the evaluation and testing, we’ll create a personalized treatment plan for your child. Then, we’ll work with you to schedule follow-up appointments as needed.
The treatment approach will depend on your child’s symptoms and individual needs. Treatment may include medicines that:
- Help your child sleep
- Help your child stay awake during the day
- Eliminate conditions that disturb your child sleep
Depending on your child’s diagnosis and treatment plan, we may refer your child to another sleep clinic in our Sleep Center. These clinics provide specialized treatment for specific sleep conditions, such as:
- Circadian rhythm disorders
- Neurobehavioral conditions
- Neuromuscular conditions
- Sleep apnea
- Sleep epilepsy
If your child needs behavioral or psychological treatment, we’ll refer you to our Behavioral Sleep Medicine Clinic. This clinic includes pediatric psychologists who are board certified in behavioral sleep medicine.
If we refer your child to another sleep clinic, we’ll coordinate all communication and appointments for you. Our goal is to make sure your treatment experience is as easy and seamless as possible.
If another doctor or pediatrician referred you to the center, our team will communicate with them throughout the process. This will help make sure your home doctor can stay informed about your child's progress and help manage any follow-up care, if needed.
If your family is traveling from out of town, we also provide concierge services and other resources.
Research
Our team is involved with studies and clinical trials that look at new treatment options for sleep disorders. We have ongoing research related to:
- Hypersomnia
- Movement disorders
- Narcolepsy
Our Sleep Center is the main site for a large, multicenter study that is looking at early onset narcolepsy. We’re also a coordinating site for the Sleep Research Network, which is a national group of institutions that collaborate on sleep research.
During the referral and screening process, our team will determine if your child can take part in a clinical trial. If your child is eligible, we will help coordinate all treatments and follow-ups.
Besides clinical trials, we also track treatment outcomes for certain sleep disorders. This tracking helps us improve our processes and procedures, so our patients can experience better results.
Meet the Team
This clinic features doctors and nurses who specialize in sleep disorders. All of our doctors specialize in sleep medicine.
Locations and Directions
Contact Us
Families can reach out to the Sleep Center for more information by filling out our online form.
All appointments are by provider referral. Providers can refer a patient to the Behavioral Medicine Clinic by contacting us.
