Causes, Dangers and Treatment of Sleep Apnea in Toddlers
Sleep apnea is known as severe disruption, where the breathing
is blocked continuously while you sleep night.
Three kinds of sleep apnea are known till now. First one is
obstructive sleep apnea in which breathing is interrupted due to blockage.
Second one is central sleep apnea, where breathing is not stopped due to any
blockage but the brain is not capable of sending signals to the muscles to
carry on the breathing process. Third one is mixed sleep apnea and it is a
blend on the above two. The most widespread is obstructive sleep apnea.
Anything can cause obstructive sleep apnea, which could actually
create blockage in the air passages and obstruct the air to enter in the lungs
of your child. Mostly, the throat glands, which are found immediately on the
back of nose, are to blame for the large size of adenoids and tonsils in
children. While the throat muscles of your child relax during sleep, these
enlarged adenoids or tonsils can obstruct air temporarily from entering into
lungs.
Adenoids and tonsils may only be somewhat outsized of course in
children. Indeed, in between ages 3-6, sleep apnea is highly widespread, when
adenoids and tonsils are the most outsized in comparison with the airway size
of the children. Allergies and infections can also cause adenoids and tonsils
to grow oversized.
Particular characteristics of face, for instance cleft palate or
receding chin and obesity are some other reasons of obstruction of air in the
air passages. Sleep apnea is higher in children who have innate or conditions
or Down syndrome, which adversely influences the upper air passage. More than
50% of children are likely to build up OSA.
Diagnosis of Sleep Apnea in Toddlers
The OSA symptoms list in toddlers is lengthy. The apparent
symptoms are snoring and trouble in a breathing process when you are sleeping
at night, frequently recognized by recess (recess is considered as 10 sec to
above with no breathing in a medical lab) in breathing.
If your child snores, it doesn’t mean that he has sleep apnea.
Only 1-3% of children who snore have sleep apnea, whereas 7-12% children snore
due to other reasons. Professor of pediatrics Mr. Gary E. Freed of Atlanta says
that even people who snore do not have sleep apnea and vice versa.
It is a matter of concern, in case your child perspires heavily
while sleeping, sleep restlessly, chokes or coughs often, breathes by way of
mouth frequently throughout daytime or at night.
Along with the above mentioned symptoms, continuous awakenings
at night can be a sleep apnea symptom. Your child may rise frequently to get
enough air to respire because of sleep apnea.
Observe you child’s behavior during daytime if you consider that he may be suffering from sleep apnea. Sleep apnea sufferers are sleepless most of the time that makes them peevish, weird and frustrated. Because of tiredness, your child may try to sleep at improper time periods.
Observe you child’s behavior during daytime if you consider that he may be suffering from sleep apnea. Sleep apnea sufferers are sleepless most of the time that makes them peevish, weird and frustrated. Because of tiredness, your child may try to sleep at improper time periods.
Your child may have adenoid or tonsils related healthiness
issues. The growth of your child will possibly be slow, in case he is not getting
enough sleep and as a result not benefitting from the hormonal growth that are
discharged during nighttime. Another reason of slow growth may be making extra
effort in breathing during night as he will be using extra calories. Mr. Gary
says that it is similar to as running a marathon race at night daily.
Children and Sleep Apnea: Diagnosis and Treatment
Mild symptoms of sleep apnea grow up silently in majority of
children. In any case, sleep apnea can put adverse affects in the behavior,
learning and growth of the children. If the sleep apnea is severe, it can
ground to hypertension, lung and heart related issues.
Discuss it with your doctor. The doctor will inquire about the
sleep habits and check up the upper air passage of your child.
In case your doctor believes that the allergies or weight might
be the cause of trouble, she will recommend handling these issues initially.
She will possibly refer you to an apnea specialist; sleep specialist, a lung or
ear, nose and throat specialist.
Polysomnogram is a test that is normally carried out in the
assessment of sleep apnea. It checks gasping and snoring sounds, levels of
oxygen in blood, breathing, movement of eyes and brain waves.
This test can be carried out in a lab under the continuous
supervision of a sleep professional. It can also be carried out at home with a
portable device. However, the lab study is considered more accurate than home
study. In any case both the studies are pain free.
Treating Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea, with Dr. Kim Ledermann
In
majority of cases, adenoids and/or tonsils are removed in children, while
others may require CPAP device that blows air into the airways with the help of
a facemask. However, CPAP does not normally remove the symptoms of obstructive
sleep apnea.
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