How to diagnose sleep apnea in children

Excerpt from:

Sleep apnea in children
Kleoniki Papazoglou,1 Manolis J. Papagrigorakis2
1.Pediatrician-Intensivist, Associate Director of Intensive Care Unit at "P. & A. Kyriakou" Children's Hospital, Athens, Greece.
2.Assistant Professor, Department of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, University of Athens, Greece.

DIAGNOSIS
Syndrome diagnosis in children is now performed on
the basis of specific laboratory tests (Guilleminault et
al., 1996; Coleman, 1999; Bower and Gungor,
2000), so that diagnosis is documented with
maximum possible certainty.
Laboratory testing may include:
– sleep study - polysomnography,
– upper airway radiographs (face/profile),
– rhinopharyngoscopy,
– computed tomography,
– MRI and
– cephalometric studies.



In conclusion, Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a syndrome with
specific features in children. Clinicians should be aware of it
to ensure its early diagnosis, detailed laboratory screening
should be performed when there is suspicion or signs of the
syndrome and its treatment should be immediate in order to
avoid side effects on child growth.