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Sleep Studies in Children

  • Rational Diagnostics
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Abstract

Sleep-related breathing disorders (SRBD), also referred to as sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), are common sleep disorders in children. They can be broadly divided between central and obstructive sleep-disordered breathing with or without associated hypoventilation. In most cases, SRBD are associated with adenotonsillar hypertrophy (obstructive SDB) which are classified as simple. SRBD can co-exist with an underlying condition like obesity, genetic syndromes or neuromuscular disorders which are classified as complex. Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard for diagnosing sleep disorders. However, it is time-consuming and requires trained technician to acquire and interpret signals. Attended in-lab respiratory polygraphies are easier to conduct and provide respiratory data equivalent to a PSG. Similar to adult sleep services, overnight unattended home respiratory polygraphies are becoming more widely used. These require careful patient selection and good parental education programs to be most successful in children. Overnight oximetry has limitations but can be a useful tool for screening children with obstructive sleep apnea and prioritizing treatment. This review aims to discuss these various diagnostic methods to assess sleep disorders in children.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine Center for Child Health, BLK Max Memorial Hospital, New Delhi, India

    Ankit Parakh

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalya, New Delhi, India

    Dhulika Dhingra

  3. Department of Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK

    Francois Abel

Authors
  1. Ankit Parakh
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  2. Dhulika Dhingra
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  3. Francois Abel
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Contributions

AP: conceptualized the idea and wrote the initial draft; DD: did the literature search and wrote the initial draft along with AA; FA: reviewed the manuscript and gave critical inputs. All authors approved the final draft. AA: will act as the guarantor.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ankit Parakh.

Additional information

Funding: None; Competing interests: None stated.

Note

Additional material related to this study is available with the online version at www.indianpediatrics.net

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Parakh, A., Dhingra, D. & Abel, F. Sleep Studies in Children. Indian Pediatr 58, 1085–1090 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13312-021-2378-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13312-021-2378-0

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