Exploring the Relationship Between Age of Nap Cessation, Screen-Positive Autism Spectrum Disorder Traits and Diagnosis of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Meghan Ellis, Andrew T Jones, Peter Rankin, Anne Bernard, Karen Thorpe, Nick Glozier, Sally Staton

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Meghan EllisMetro South Addiction and Mental Health Services, Brisbane, Australia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4082-1463

Andrew T JonesData Science Collaborative Research Platform, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

Peter RankinQueensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

Anne BernardData Science Collaborative Research Platform, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

Karen ThorpeQueensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

Nick GlozierDepartment of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.

Sally StatonQueensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. s.staton@uq.edu.au.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThis study examined whether the age of nap cessation (the transition from daytime napping to sleeping exclusively at night) is associated with screen-positive Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) traits or an Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) diagnosis in children.

methodsThis retrospective cohort study used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), a population-based birth cohort recruited between 1991 and 1992. The analytic sample included 6,424 children with available nap cessation and covariate data. Parents reported children's nap patterns at 6, 18, 30, 42, 57, 69, and 81 months. Binary logistic regression examined associations between age of nap cessation and later ASD traits or ADHD diagnosis. Models adjusted for gestational age, birth weight, maternal age, child sex, maternal ethnicity, older siblings, social class, and maternal alcohol use during pregnancy.

resultsChildren who ceased napping by 18 months had higher odds of an ADHD diagnosis at age seven than those who ceased at 30 months (OR = 5.54, 95% CI [2.52, 11.20], p < .001). Nap cessation at 18 months was also associated with increased odds of ASD traits, although the estimate was less precise (OR = 1.81, 95% CI [0.96, 3.16], p = .051).

conclusionsEarly nap cessation may be associated with later ADHD diagnosis and could reflect differences in sleep regulation. A possible association with elevated ASD traits was also observed but remains uncertain and should be considered exploratory pending replication. Nap cessation timing should not be interpreted as an early screening or diagnostic marker.

Indexed as

ALSPACAttention-deficit hyperactivity disorderAutism spectrum disorderChildNap cessationSleep

Identifiers

PMID42573732

DOI10.1097/DBP.0000000000000281

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.