# Sleep Disturbances and Circadian Misalignment as Potential Markers of Early Childhood Depression

> **NIH NIH K23** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $179,519

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Evidence in adults and youth suggests that sleep disturbances precede and predict the onset of depression and
may serve as an important marker of depression. Various types of sleep disturbances, including disruptions of
sleep continuity and abnormal sleep architecture, have been identified as markers of depression in adults, but
have been virtually unexplored as markers of early childhood depression. Early childhood depression symptoms
have become widely recognized as a significant public health concern as they are associated with functional
impairments and heightened risk for depression across the lifespan. However, these symptoms often go
unreported and underdiagnosed because they are difficult for caregivers and clinicians to identify. Research is
needed to identify markers of early childhood depression as early as age 3 years or before, to improve our
capacity for the earliest possible identification of young children struggling with, and at risk for, depression. This
K23 proposal will examine sleep disturbances as a plausible marker of early childhood depressive symptoms in
a prospectively examined sample of young children, oversampled for familial risk for depression. This proposal
leverages an exceptional opportunity to add measures to a NIMH-funded study following a large, high-risk cohort
of mother-infant dyads annually from birth through age 3. This K23 proposal will add comprehensive measures
of sleep (i.e., sleep diaries, actigraphy, and polysomnography) at age 3 years to examine a) which specific
features of objectively measured sleep (during both day and night) at age 3 best correlate with early childhood
depression symptoms, b) whether misalignments in circadian rhythm – “chronodisruptions” – are associated with
early childhood depression symptoms, and c) whether sleep disturbances in infancy and toddlerhood precede
the onset of depression symptoms at age 3. This project has the potential to greatly inform our understanding of
both the sequalae of sleep disturbances in early childhood, as well as identify a plausible marker of early
childhood depression. Completion of the proposed project will provide the applicant with needed training and
expertise in 1) the collection and analysis of PSG data in early childhood, 2) the developmental psychopathology
of early childhood depression, 3) the quantification of chronodisruption in early childhood, and 4) advanced
statistical analysis techniques. A rich training environment and a multidisciplinary team of mentors in each of
these areas is detailed. The described research and training activities will enable the candidate to become an
independent scientist investigating the role of sleep disturbances in the development of psychopathology across
early childhood.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10458083
- **Project number:** 5K23MH127305-02
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Caroline Paige Hoyniak
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $179,519
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-08-01 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10458083

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10458083, Sleep Disturbances and Circadian Misalignment as Potential Markers of Early Childhood Depression (5K23MH127305-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10458083. Licensed CC0.

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