Effects of Sleep Disordered Breathing
What is Sleep Disordered Breathing?
Pediatric sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is a general term for breathing difficulties during sleep. SDB can range from frequent loud snoring to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition where part, or all, of the airway is blocked repeatedly during sleep.
What happens during SBD?
Muscle relaxation occurs when we sleep. This includes the muscles in the back of the throat that help keep the airway open. In sleep disordered breathing, these muscles can relax too much and restrict or collapse the airway, making breathing difficult.
When a child’s breathing is disrupted during sleep, the body responds as if the child is choking. The child’s heart rate increases, blood pressure rises, the brain becomes aroused, and sleep is disrupted. Oxygen levels in the blood can also drop.
What are the effects of SBD?
Overall, sleep affects every aspect of a child's development, particularly higher cognitive functions. Research suggests that the long term effects of untreated sleep apnea in children include cognitive, behavioral, and psychosocial problems as well as growth delays and impacts on cardiovascular health. Consequences of untreated obstructive sleep apnea include failure to thrive, enuresis (bed-wetting), attention-deficit disorder, behavior problems, poor academic performance, and cardiopulmonary disease.
In children, sleep disordered breathing is characterized by sleep patterns which can include: snoring, restless sleeping, waking at night, obstructive events (apnea), enuresis (involuntary urination), and behavioral changes during the day (hyperactivity, lethargy, increased daytime fatigue) as well as difficulty in arousal and in falling asleep.
Behavior and cognitive deficits can recur in children with SDB. Poor academic performance in the teenage years is associated with snoring. Greater than 80% of children who have documented and treated SDB will benefit from long term increases in cognitive ability, behavioral stabilization and positive changes in temperament.
How common is SBD?
Sleep Disordered Breathing affects up to 11% of children and forms a continuum of severity ranging from primary snoring to obstructive sleep apnea. Certain pediatric populations such as children with special needs, children with psychiatric or medical diagnoses and children with autism or pervasive developmental disorders have a higher prevalence of SBD. Recent research has demonstrated 75% of children with ADHD also have a sleep disorder.
The most common etiology of obstructive sleep apnea is adenotonsillar hypertrophy. Enlarged adenoids and/or tonsils can be caused by food or environmental allergies.
What does SBD look/sound like?
Signs of obstructive sleep apnea in children include:
mouth breathing awake or asleep, in the absence of snoring
snoring, often with pauses, snorts, gasps
heavy or audible breathing while sleeping
very restless sleep/sleeping in unusual positions (i.e., chin tipped upward away from the neck)
sleepwalking or night terrors
bedwetting
daytime sleepiness or behavior problems
difficulty with arousal in waking
attention problems (hyperactivity)
What can I do if I have concerns about SBD?
**If you suspect your child may have a sleep disorder, you should see a doctor who specializes in sleep disorders immediately.**
Better Learning Therapies can help with preliminary assessments and referrals if needed.
Contact us today.
References
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