Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 17, 2026
P50 Sensory Gating in Infants
Published on: December 26, 2013
Apnea recordings of healthy infants at 40, 44, and 52 weeks postconception
Insights
Normal full-term infants show minimal apnea duration, with episodes clustering during sleep. Apnea length and frequency are strongly correlated in newborns monitored via pediatric pneumogram (PPG).
Area of Science:
- Neonatal physiology
- Respiratory monitoring
Background:
- Apnea is common in newborns, but prolonged episodes are concerning.
- Understanding normal respiratory patterns is crucial for infant health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize respiratory activity and apnea in normal full-term infants.
- To establish normative data for apnea duration and frequency.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the pediatric pneumogram (PPG) impedance technique for continuous 24-hour respiratory monitoring.
- Recorded data from 46 infants at 3 days, 4 weeks, and 12 weeks post-birth in hospital and home settings.
- Achieved over 16 hours of data for 77% of monitored infants.
Main Results:
- No infant experienced apnea exceeding 15 seconds at 40-44 weeks postconception or 11 seconds at 52 weeks.
- Apneic episodes showed significant clustering during reported sleep periods.
- A strong correlation was observed between the longest apnea duration and the hourly frequency of apneic episodes.
Conclusions:
- Normal full-term infants exhibit brief apneic episodes, primarily during sleep.
- The PPG technique provides reliable data for assessing infant respiratory patterns.
- Findings establish baseline apnea parameters for healthy term infants.
Abstract:
A total of 129 recordings of the respiratory activity of 46 normal full-term infants were obtained continuously for 24 hours in the hospital nursery at 3 days of life and in the home environment at 4 weeks and 12 weeks after birth. The pediatric pneumogram (PPG) technique, an impedance method, was used. Pneumogram data over longer than 16 hours was obtained on 77% of infants monitored. No infants experienced apnea longer than 15 seconds in duration at 40 and 44 weeks postconception, or greater than 11 seconds at 52 weeks postconception. Twenty-four hour plots of hourly apnea frequency revealed a marked variability, with evidence of clustering of apneic episodes during periods of reported sleep. Longest apnea time and hourly frequency of apneic episodes were highly correlated.
