Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 26, 2026
Breath Collection from Children for Disease Biomarker Discovery
Published on: February 14, 2019
My child cannot breathe while sleeping: a report of three cases and review
Won Hee Seo1, Minkyu Park2, So-Hee Eun1
1Department of Pediatrics, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Insights
Sudden sleep breath-holding spells in children can signal serious conditions like nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy or parasomnia. Prompt diagnosis using sleep studies and pH monitoring is crucial for proper treatment.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Sleep Medicine
- Gastroenterology
Background:
- Sudden breath-holding episodes during sleep in children may be linked to sudden infant death syndrome and impact development.
- These events can be alarming for parents and clinicians alike.
Observation:
- This study details three preschool children experiencing nocturnal choking and waking events.
- The cases presented diverse underlying causes: nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy, nocturnal gastroesophageal reflux disease, and parasomnia.
Findings:
- Breath spells during sleep can be a rare sign of parasomnia linked to gastroesophageal reflux.
- These episodes may also indicate nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy.
Implications:
- Comprehensive diagnostic tools including video electroencephalography, polysomnography, and gastric pH monitoring are essential.
- Accurate differential diagnosis is vital for managing sleep-related breathing disorders in children.
Background:
Sudden breath-holding episodes during sleep in young children are potentially related to sudden infant death syndrome and other life-threatening events. Additionally, these episodes can negatively affect child's growth and development.
Case Presentation:
Here, we present 3 cases of preschool children with similar paroxysmal nocturnal waking events associated with choking that had different etiologies (nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy, nocturnal gastroesophageal reflux disease, and parasomnia, respectively).
Conclusions:
It is important to take into consideration the fact that breath spells during sleep can occur as a rare manifestation of parasomnia due to gastroesophageal reflux or as a symptom of nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy. Full video electroencephalography, polysomnography, and simultaneous gastric pH monitoring should be used for the differential diagnosis of sleep-related disorders, such as breath spells, in children.
