Neurobiology of Sleep Disturbances in Children With Atopic Dermatitis-Reply

Dr Friedman offers some interesting neurobiologic speculations regarding some of the findings in our recently published study¹and suggests potential links to particular neurobehavioral systems. Specifically, the possibility of monitoring speech hesitation and switching pauses may represent an intriguing approach to examine a potential mechanism (at a level of specific neurochemical alteration). Further, some of the neurobehavioral systems described are a focus of interest within one of the research programs conducted at the University of Pittsburgh, Pa, actively investigating serotonergically mediated inhibition of dopamine in a study examining prolactin response to a serotonergic agonist in depressed children and normal controls.^2,3We are also exploring the possibility that some sleep and mood changes relevant to affective disorders may be mediated by changes in frontal-striatal activation, as reflected by electroencephalographic frontal activity asymmetries.^4,5However, it appears less clear to our interpretation whether the increased right frontal activity is a