Relationship between sleep disorders and non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents with allergic rhinitis: a dual perspective analysis of person-centered and variable-centered on the role of social isolation

Front Public Health. 2026 May 11;14:1795013. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1795013. eCollection 2026.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have established an association between sleep disorders and non-suicidal self-injury, yet the underlying psychological mechanisms of this relationship in adolescents with allergic rhinitis, a unique group with clear physical triggers and nighttime symptom burden, remain inadequately elucidated.

METHODS: This study employed a cross-sectional survey design and recruited allergic rhinitis adolescents aged 12 to 18 from five tertiary hospitals in Chengdu, China, between August and October 2025. Measurement and evaluation were conducted using the Sleep Disorders Screening Questionnaire, Social Isolation Scale, and Inventory of Statements About Self-injury.

RESULTS: Sleep disorders were positively correlated with social isolation (r = 0.475, p < 0.001) and NSSI (r = 0.385, p < 0.001), while social isolation was also positively correlated with NSSI (r = 0.405, p < 0.001). Mediation analysis showed that social isolation partially mediated the association between sleep disorders and NSSI, with an indirect effect of 0.154 [95% CI (0.104, 0.205)], accounting for 38.4% of the total effect. Latent profile analysis identified two subgroups: a low sleep disorder-low social isolation group (46.9%) and a high sleep disorder-high social isolation group (53.1%). Adolescents in the high sleep disorder-high social isolation group reported significantly higher NSSI scores than those in the low-risk group (t = -2.111, p = 0.035); this difference remained significant after adjustment for demographic and disease-related covariates (F = 7.454, p = 0.007).

CONCLUSION: Through dual perspective analysis from individual-centered and variable-centered views, this study highlighted a significant association between sleep disorders and non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents with allergic rhinitis. In the clinical management of allergic rhinitis adolescents, routine screening and intervention for sleep disorders should be prioritized, alongside attention to the patients’ social connectedness, and implementation of stratified, integrated preventive and intervention strategies for high-risk subgroups.

PMID:42200143 | PMC:PMC13199317 | DOI:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1795013