The doctor will need to know if your child was born premature or full-term. A sleep doctor can look for other conditions that may be involved. It is also important to know if there is something else that is causing your child’s sleep problems. With the results of this study the doctor will be able to develop an individual treatment plan for your child. A sleep study is the best way to evaluate your child’s sleep. A parent or guardian also will need to stay at the sleep center with the child. The study requires your child to spend the night at the sleep center. It also will show the severity of the problem. The sleep study will reveal the nature of your infant’s breathing problem. It charts your child’s brain waves, heartbeat, and breathing during sleep. This kind of study is called polysomnography. If needed, the doctor will schedule your infant for a sleep study. A sleep doctor will review your infant’s history and symptoms. Some centers specialize in helping children. If so, then you should schedule an appointment at an accredited sleep center. You may need to take your infant to a sleep doctor. But infant sleep apnea has not been established as a risk factor for SIDS. These problems include:Ī small percentage of children who die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) have apnea symptoms prior to death. Its presence at birth is usually a sign of another illness.Ī variety of medical conditions can cause infant sleep apnea or make it worse. In preterm infants, infant sleep apnea tends to appear between the second and seventh day of life. The risk decreases to 25 percent for infants who weigh less than 5.5 pounds. It is less common in infants under the age of six months.ĭuring the first month after birth it occurs in 84 percent of infants who weigh less than 2.2 pounds. It sometimes occurs in larger preterm or full-term infants. Small preterm infants are most likely to have infant sleep apnea. What are risk factors for infant sleep apnea? Obstructive sleep apnea may be related to underdeveloped facial features, such as a small or pushed back chin, as well as structural airway abnormalities and low tone. Obstructive apneas are rare in healthy infants. The duration of these normal events is very short. It also may occur after the child sighs or moves. Even healthy infants may have a brief central apnea. This can be a normal part of an infant’s development. It is common for there to be some instability in an infant’s breathing. It also can be a secondary problem that is caused by another medical condition. It can be a developmental problem that results from an immature brainstem. Infant central sleep apnea has two general causes. This is known as “bradycardia.” The infant even may lose consciousness and need to be resuscitated. This is known as “hypoxemia.” The infant also may develop a slow heartbeat. The infant may not have enough oxygen in the blood. These breathing problems can cause severe complications. Apneas that occur in larger premature infants and full-term infants tend to be central apneas. The majority of apneas that occur in small premature infants are mixed apneas. As a result, premature infants tend to have more sleep-related breathing disorder and apneas. Premature infants tend to have more REM sleep than full-term infants. Mixed apneas have features that are suggestive of central and obstructive cause. Obstructive apneas occur when soft tissue in the back of the throat collapses and blocks the airway during sleep. As an example, a problem in the heart’s pump function can impair circulation and the brain does not send the correct signals to breathe during an infant’s sleep. Sometimes, central apneas can occur due to a problem outside the brain. Central apneas occur when your brain does not send the proper signals to the body resulting in a decrease in effort to breathe and even a complete pause in breathing. The apneas in infant sleep apnea may be central, obstructive, or mixed. Partial reductions in breathing are called “hypopneas.” Complete pauses in breathing are called “apneas.” In infancy, the frequency of these events increases during REM sleep. It involves reductions and pauses in breathing that occur during an infant’s sleep. Infant sleep apnea is a sleep-related breathing disorder. Morse, DO and John Saito, MD What is infant sleep apnea? Resources for Health Care Professionals.
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