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Neurobehavioral function is impaired in children with all severities of sleep disordered breathing

Robert S Bourke1, Vicki Anderson, Joel S C Yang

  • 1Critical Care and Neuroscience Research, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.

Sleep Medicine
|February 18, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Children with sleep disordered breathing (SDB), including primary snoring (PS) and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), exhibit more behavioral and executive function issues than healthy children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Sleep Medicine
  • Child Psychology
  • Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Background:

  • Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is prevalent in children, encompassing primary snoring (PS) and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).
  • The impact of SDB on children's daily functioning, including behavior and cognitive skills, requires further investigation across different severity levels.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess everyday functional outcomes in children with varying degrees of SDB compared to controls.
  • To investigate behavioral, attentional, and executive functions in children diagnosed with PS, mild OSAS, and moderate/severe OSAS.

Main Methods:

  • A cohort of 136 children aged 7-12 years underwent overnight polysomnography (PSG) to classify them into four groups: PS, mild OSAS, moderate/severe OSAS, and controls.
  • Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) were utilized to evaluate behavioral function, attention, and executive skills.

Main Results:

  • Children across all SDB severity spectrums demonstrated significantly higher rates of behavioral problems (total, internalizing, and externalizing) compared to control children.
  • Elevated rates of behavioral executive dysfunction were observed in children with SDB, indicating a spectrum of cognitive and behavioral impairments.

Conclusions:

  • Behavioral, attention, and executive function deficits are evident in children with both primary snoring (PS) and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).
  • These findings highlight the need to consider the broader functional impact of milder SDB forms, such as PS, which are often underestimated.
Abstract

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