Research on sleep in children with autism spectrum disorders shows that:

• Prevalence of sleep problems is 44-83%, including prolonged time to fall asleep, decreased sleep duration and continuity, and increased arousals and awakenings (Richdale, 1999)
• IQ does not predict prevalence or severity of sleep concerns in ASD (Richdale, 1999; Patzold, 1998)
• Studies indicate most common sleep concern is insomnia – difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep
• Neurochemistry, additional medical issues and environmental conditions all play a role in the child’s sleep