Snoring and stertor are associated with more sleep disturbance than apneas and hypopneas in pediatric SDB.

purposePolysomnography is not recommended for children at home and does not adequately capture partial upper airway obstruction (snoring and stertor), the dominant pathology in pediatric sleep-disordered breathing. New methods are required for assessment. Aims were to assess sleep disruption linked to partial upper airway obstruction and to evaluate unattended Sonomat use in a large group of children at home.

methodsChildren with suspected obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) had a single home-based Sonomat recording (n = 231). Quantification of breath sound recordings allowed identification of snoring, stertor, and apneas/hypopneas. Movement signals were used to measure quiescent (sleep) time and sleep disruption.

resultsSuccessful recordings occurred in 213 (92%) and 113 (53%) had no OSA whereas only 11 (5%) had no partial obstruction. Snore/stertor occurred more frequently (15.3 [5.4, 30.1] events/h) and for a longer total duration (69.9 min [15.7, 140.9]) than obstructive/mixed apneas and hypopneas (0.8 [0.0, 4.7] events/h, 1.2 min [0.0, 8.5]); both p < 0.0001. Many non-OSA children had more partial obstruction than those with OSA. Most intervals between snore and stertor runs were < 60 s (79% and 61% respectively), indicating that they occur in clusters. Of 14,145 respiratory-induced movement arousals, 70% were preceded by runs of snore/stertor with the remainder associated with apneas/hypopneas.

conclusionsRuns of snoring and stertor occur much more frequently than obstructive apneas/hypopneas and are associated with a greater degree of sleep disruption. Children with and without OSA are frequently indistinguishable regarding the amount, frequency, and the degree of sleep disturbance caused by snoring and stertor.