Sample Summary Title: Risk factors of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome in children https://journalotohns.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40463-020-0404-1 Xu Z, Wu Y, Tai J, et al. J Otolaryngol - Head Neck Surg – 2020. Summary of the Study: This study was designed to better understand the risk factors for pediatric OSA. The authors of the study used questionnaires and physical examinations as well as PSGs of children between the ages of 2 and 15. These data were collected to discover risk factors for sleep disorders. The authors found that independent risk factors for OSA were tonsillar and adenoid hypertrophy, breastfeeding, obesity, male gender, and if the child had been snoring for ≥ 3 months. Type of Study: Observational study. Strong Points: - Large study of 1,578 children.
- Multiparametric assessment of child demographic factors and health.
Weak Points: - Questionnaires used were not validated.
- Parent report of child’s symptoms may not be completely accurate.
- The authors did not include facial structure abnormalities in their models of risk.
Shows: - We may be able to accurately predict when a child has OSA by looking at the risk factors in this study.
- Physicians may be better able to screen pediatric patients for OSA using these predictive models.
What we need to think about: Dentists need to think about the usefulness of using these risk factors as a trigger to screen for OSA. |
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