Assessing Sleep-Disordered Breathing in Children

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) in children is a common disorder, with prevalence estimates of approximately 1-2%. Furthermore, premature infants and children with other conditions including craniofacial disorders, obesity, neuromuscular disorders, Down syndrome, chronic lung disease, sickle cell anemia, central hypoventilation syndromes, and a number of other genetic and metabolic diseases are at higher risk of sleep-disordered breathing. Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome can result in serious morbidity, including neurocognitive disorders such as poor learning, behavioral problems, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, failure to thrive, cor pulmonale, and even death if untreated in more severe cases (1, 2, 3). In addition, there are high economic costs of untreated OSAS in children (4).