Sleep terrors are more common in younger children, and tend to disappear on their own by the time the child reaches adolescence.

Boys are more likely than girls to experience sleep terrors.

If your child's night terror episodes are infrequent, there's probably nothing to worry about.

But a child who experiences them regularly or has injured himself or someone else during an episode should visit a doctor to have the situation evaluated.

Sometimes an overnight sleep lab study is indicated to help doctors evaluate and treat severe sleep terror cases.

As a parent, there is unfortunately not much you can do to help a child who awakens screaming in a sleep terror episode.

The best thing you can do is to offer loving support and comfort whenever your child experiences one of these episodes.