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ABSTRACT Aim To describe the association between different physical activity and sleep parameters in school‐aged children born very preterm. Methods A cross‐sectional analysis was done in a cohort of 6‐ to 10‐year‐old children born at < 32 weeks' gestation at the Department of Neonatology, University of Tübingen, Germany. Data were collected between May and November 2022 using actigraphy for sleep and activity, as well as patient records, questionnaires, and anthropometric measurements. Results Two hundred and thirty five children (46% girls) were analysed at a median age of 8.0 (6.0–9.0) years. Daily sleep duration averaged 8.5 (SD: ±0.7) h. 24.7% achieved daily recommendations of 60 min moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Total physical activity, measured as counts/min, differed based on gestational age, with children born < 28 weeks' gestation exhibiting higher activity than those born at 28–32 weeks. Regression analysis showed one standard deviation (SD) increase in sleep efficiency associated with a 0.14 SD decrease in total physical activity (Standardized β: −0.14, CI: −0.26 to −0.02) and 37% lower odds of being in the higher MVPA group (OR: 0.63, CI: 0.47 to 0.83). Conclusion Our study revealed important differences in some aspects of sleep and activity behaviour by gestational age that warrant future investigations.
Hassan et al. (Tue,) studied this question.