Does your adopted child have a big neck compared to peers? The University of Virginia recently completed a study indicating that these children are more likely to develop a sleep related breathing disorder than their peers are. These disorders affect breathing during sleep, the most common being obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). A pediatric sleep center identified 215 children between 18 months and 18 years old for the study. The researchers who studied these children identified some common trends among those who had a sleep related breathing disorder. Apparently, neck size was a better predictor of mean oxygen saturation than BMI, weight, or tonsil size. They also noted that obesity seemed to cause snoring in 37.3 percent of children. OSA is common in obese children and can lead to high blood pressure.
Researchers measured each child’s neck size in sitting and neutral head position. The severity of the sleep related breathing disorder was determined by apena-hypopnea index (AHI) and mean oxygen saturation values during measurement. Researchers allowed for an age adjustment in neck size which they determined by the child’s body mass index and weight. Researchers determined that doctors should automatically question children with bigger neck sizes than their peers about snoring, apnea, excessive sleepiness, and hyperactivity.
A related study at the University of Michigan found that children with sleep-disordered breathing are more likely to suffer from anxiety. These researchers used two standard screening tests to look at children from 341 families. They noted that hyperactivity is common among children with sleep disordered breathing and anxiety is associated with hyperactivity. Of the children they identified as being at risk for sleep disordered breathing, half had anxiety as well.
If you haven’t noticed previously, you may want to go and look at your child’s neck. If you have siblings close in age, you can compare neck sizes that way. Otherwise, you may need to invite some classmates over for a playtime.
Photo Credit: 2006 Julia Fuller.