Background. A good night’s sleep plays a key role in diseases resistance, injury prevention, and mood stability. The objective of this study was to examine relationship between sleep problems and accidental injury occurrences in school-aged children. Method. A retrospective study was conducted for comparing two groups of children. Children who have experienced injuries for at least two times during an academic year are the participants in the injury group (IG) and those who have not experienced any kind of injuries are placed in the noninjury group (NIG). Data was collected through parent-reported sleep patterns and problems using Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). Findings. The findings showed that global sleep problems were more in the IG than in the NIG. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the daytime sleepiness and sleep duration are the two major reasons for accidental injury. In addition, significant difference was seen between the sleep patterns of the two groups. Sleep duration was also shorter in the IG, and this group had a greater percentage (63% versus 41.1%) of “short sleepers” (<9？h). Conclusion. There is a significant relationship between injury occurrence and sleep problems and sleep duration in Iranian school-aged children. 1. Background Adequate sleep with regard to both quality and quantity is among the basic needs of human beings and plays a significant role in the physical, emotional, and cognitive development of children [1]. Sleep is regulated by complex and interacting biological and circadian processes, and sleep patterns also depend on physical, psychological, and environmental factors [2, 3]. Children's sleep patterns and habits in particular are influenced by external factors such as culture, health-related behaviors, parenting practices, and social interactions within the family. For example, caregivers’ beliefs and their understanding of the meaning and importance of sleep may not only have direct effects on children's sleep patterns but may also impact parents’ interpretation of sleep behaviors and their willingness to address problematic behaviors with their healthcare providers [2, 4, 5]. Sleep disturbances and irregular sleep patterns in childhood often lead to daytime sleepiness and short- and long-term consequences [2, 6], including somatic complaints such as headaches [7] and mood and neurobehavioral problems such as irritability, hyperactivity, and inattention [8–10]. The psychological and behavioral consequences may in turn result in increase in family and peer conflicts and parenting
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