Sleep apnea is a disorder that affects five percent of the child population (especially between two and six years) and that makes the dream not develop normally, since it is brief breathing interruptions which can last from scarce to several seconds.
The consequences that sleep apnea has for the health and quality of life of the child they can become serious, and therefore, during the celebration of the 64th Congress of the Spanish Society of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics (SEDO), specialists have focused on the need to promote interdisciplinary treatments to diagnose and treat this important early sleep disorder
Consequences much more serious than snoring
What is sleep apnea? In children with enlarged adenoids or tonsils, the air flow is partially blocked and the throat narrows. During sleep, the muscles in the upper part of the throat relax, the tissues close and this causes blockage of the airway, causing breathing patterns known as apneas.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) in children is often associated with snoring, but experts say it has much more serious consequences, because when instead of through the nose, breathing occurs through the mouth, Maxillofacial development in growth stage can be altered.
"Children with OSA usually have a very characteristic face: elongated, with a small jaw and thrown back, with a narrow palate, cross bite and the incisors forward. In addition, they usually have many dark circles because they do not rest properly" - explained the orthodontist Encarna de Fernando, in the 64th Congress of the Spanish Society of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics.
And is that children who have sleep apnea usually stop breathing for 10 to 30 seconds while you sleep, and up to 400 times in one night, significantly altering the quality of sleep. Unable to sleep deeply, they show daytime fatigue that can also cause attention deficit, poor school performance and behavioral problems.
"Problems breathing during the night cause drowsiness during the day, which entails difficulty paying attention and in many cases it ends up causing behavioral problems in children suffering from OSAS" - warned the orthodontist José Luís Insua during the Congress.
In addition, there are studies that show that untreated infant sleep apnea can cause deterioration in intellectual performance, impairing children's development. Not surprisingly, experts believe that it can mean loss of IQ of up to 15 points.
Therefore, the more than 800 specialists gathered in this Congress have wanted to alert the importance of detecting and treating early childhood sleep apnea, in order to avoid serious consequences for the physical and intellectual development of children.
How is sleep apnea syndrome diagnosed?
Parents are often the first to give the alarm when they hear their child snore or see him sleep in an interrupted manner. However, it is important to note that not all snoring children suffer from SAOS, although in case of suspicion we should always consult with a specialist to make an assessment.
If the parents do not observe anything, it will normally be the pediatrician or the ENT who diagnoses the problem, although the orthodontist usually does it in the first revision of the six years, because as we have said, the SAOS also damages the dentofacial development of the child.
"If the pediatricians and ENT who see the children do not think about sleep apnea, it will hardly be diagnosed, because the parents do not know the symptoms nor can they detect them" - the experts at the SEDO Congress have warned.How is sleep apnea treated?
As we have seen at the beginning, The main cause of apnea is the enlargement of the tonsils, so once the diagnosis is confirmed and depending on the severity of the symptoms, the specialist may indicate the removal of the tonsils and adenoids (vegetations) to correct the problem.
This surgical intervention, known as "adenotonsilectomy", helps to normalize nighttime breathing parameters, as well as contributing to the improvement of daytime symptoms.
It is usually an effective surgery, but it has a moderate rate of disease persistence and obviously does not correct the associated dentofacial problems, so it is essential that these are diagnosed and a parallel orthodontic treatment is carried out so that the results are better
"To solve this problem properly interdisciplinary treatment is necessary in which specialists from very diverse areas intervene, such as the pediatrician and orthodontist, but also the pulmonologist and otolary "- said Dr. Encarna de Fernando.
Once again the importance of going to regular check-ups with the pediatrician, without forgetting the pediatric dentist and orthodontist, is evident in order to be able to diagnose any anomaly that may appear in the child early, such as sleep apnea syndrome .
Via Spanish Society of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics
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