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Sleep and breathing in sleep in children with breath-holding spells
Neuropsychobiology
|January 1, 1984
Insights
Breath-holding spells in children are not linked to sleep breathing disorders. Sleep studies showed no significant apnea, suggesting these spells are psychological, not physiological.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Sleep Medicine
- Child Neurology
- Psychosomatic Medicine
Background:
- Breath-holding spells are common in children, with uncertain underlying causes.
- Previous research has explored potential links to sleep disturbances and breathing disorders.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence of sleep-related breathing disorders in children experiencing breath-holding spells.
- To determine if sleep abnormalities contribute to the occurrence of breath-holding spells.
Main Methods:
- Polysomnography (sleep recordings) was conducted on 21 children diagnosed with breath-holding spells.
- Sleep architecture, including sleep stages and apneic episodes, was analyzed.
Main Results:
- Sleep recordings showed increased wake time and light sleep (stage 1), with reduced deep sleep (stage 2) and REM sleep.
- No child exhibited more than 20 apneic episodes during sleep, ruling out significant sleep apnea.
Conclusions:
- The study's findings support the hypothesis that breath-holding spells are primarily a functional disturbance of a psychological nature.
- These results suggest that sleep-related breathing disorders are unlikely to be the cause of breath-holding spells in this pediatric population.
Abstract:
Sleep recordings were obtained in 21 children with breath-holding spells to investigate the possible existence of breathing disorders in sleep. Sleep recordings revealed an increased amount of wake time within sleep and sleep stage 1, and decreased amounts of stages 2 and REM. None of the children had more than 20 apneic episodes during sleep. These findings support the hypothesis that breath-holding spells are a functional disturbance of psychological nature only.