The most common cause of childhood OSA is overgrowth of the tonsils and adenoid. These lymph tissues tend to grow inward during childhood and may block the upper airway in some children. Children with obesity, a small face, and those with neurological and genetic disorders such as Down Syndrome, are also at a risk for airway obstruction due to their small or floppy airway.
Screening for OSA:
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends screening and evaluating every child for OSA during their well-being visit. Questions that parents and caregivers may be asked include: “Does your child have any difficulty breathing during sleep?” “Does your child snore and how often?” “Is your child restless during sleep? “Is your child sleepy in class?”
“Does your child have any behavioral problems in school or at home?”
Recent studies emphasize higher prevalence of the disorder in Latinx/Hispanic and Black populations. As the largest health care provider in the Bronx, the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) remains committed to identifying and treating children with OSA and providing them with long-standing care.
Treatment for OSA:
Every child who screens positively for OSA undergoes a comprehensive physical examination and evaluation by a team of experts at our Sleep Center at CHAM. These children may also undergo an overnight sleep study at our Pediatric Sleep Laboratory so we can do a thorough assessment of the child’s sleep quality and identify what is affecting their ability to breathe smoothly during sleep. Together with the family, we determine the best treatment plan, which could be adenotonsillectomy – removal of the tonsils and adenoids, or other treatments such as continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) ventilation, and weight management. All children continue to be monitored over time to ensure improvement and complete resolution of their OSA.
The Division of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at CHAM
In addition to OSA, The Division of Pediatric Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at CHAM provides diagnosis and treatment for a wide variety of respiratory illnesses in infants, children and adolescents. We offer comprehensive consultation and follow-up for a variety of complex respiratory conditions including asthma, rare lung diseases, chronic respiratory failure and technologically dependent children, neuro-muscular and chest wall disorders, lung infections, and lung and airway anomalies.
Our Sleep Center, which provides comprehensive sleep studies performed in a state-of-the-art 4-bed sleep laboratory at CHAM, is the largest and most comprehensive full-service sleep laboratory and evaluation center dedicated exclusively to children in the New York metropolitan area. Our multidisciplinary team provides state-of-the-art diagnosis and treatment of each child's sleep problems including the treatment of OSA, insomnia, behavioral sleep issues and weight management. The Sleep Center at CHAM has led NIH-funded sleep research for the past 20 years, and our findings have been published in premier medical journals.
OSA can have long-term effects on health and quality of life of children as they enter adulthood, and also has significant cost implications, but it is treatable, and we are here at CHAM’s Sleep Center ready to help.
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