Body mass index as an indicator of obstructive sleep apnea in pediatric Down syndrome

Shires, Courtney B.; Anold, Sandra L.; Schoumacher, Robert A.; Dehoff, George W.; Donepudi, Sreekrishna K.; Stocks, Rose Mary

doi:10.1016/j.ijporl.2010.03.050

« Previous Next »International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
Volume 74, Issue 7 , Pages 768-772, July 2010

Body mass index as an indicator of obstructive sleep apnea in pediatric Down syndrome☆

Courtney B. Shires
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 910 Madison Avenue, Room 428, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 901 448 5886; fax: +1 901 448 5120.
Sandra L. Anold
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 50 N Dunlap Street, Memphis, TN 38103, USA
- Tel.: +1 9014485500; fax: +1 901 448 7836.
Robert A. Schoumacher
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 50 N Dunlap Street, Memphis, TN 38103, USA
- Tel.: +1 9014485500; fax: +1 901 448 7836.
George W. Dehoff
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 956 Court Avenue, Room H314, Memphis, TN, USA
- Tel.: +1 901 448 5814; fax: +1 901 448 7836.
Sreekrishna K. Donepudi
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 910 Madison Avenue, Room 428, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
- Tel.: +1 901 448 5886; fax: +1 901 448 5120.
Rose Mary Stocks
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 910 Madison Avenue, Room 428, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
- Tel.: +1 901 448 5886; fax: +1 901 448 5120.

Received 19 September 2009; received in revised form 20 March 2010; accepted 23 March 2010.

Abstract

Objective

Our objective was to determine if higher body mass index (BMI) increases the likelihood of, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in pediatric Down syndrome (DS) patients.

Methods

We performed a, retrospective chart review of 63 DS patients evaluated by overnight polysomnography from December 1995 to February 2005. Patients aged less than 2 years were excluded. Remaining patients were grouped, according to presence (n=19) or absence (n=33) of OSA based on apnea hypopnea index (AHI). OSA, and non-OSA DS groups were age matched while blinded to patient attributes other than age and OSA, status. Patients without appropriate age matches were excluded. We recorded various patient information, including age, sex, height, weight, number of apneas, number of hypopneas, respiratory distress index (RDI), apnea–hypopnea index (AHI), lowest oxygen saturation during sleep, mean oxygen saturation, number of arousals per hour, and mean time spent in REM sleep. We calculated BMI using the, standard kg/m² formula and converted this into a Z-score.

Results

Fifty-two DS patients were analyzed with average age of 9.3±4.5 years (10.2±4.2 in 33 OSA patients, 7.8±4.3 in 19 non-OSA patients). There were 28 males and 24 females. The OSA group mean BMI Z-score was 2.09±0.94, and the non-OSA group Z-score was 1.4±1.40. The Z-scores for BMI were statistically significant between OSA and non-OSA patients with p=0.03 by t-test.

Conclusions

When age and sex adjusted, BMI has a statistically significant association with the presence of OSA in Down syndrome patients. The incidence of OSA also increases with increasing age in this population.

Keywords: BMI, Obstructive sleep apnea, Down syndrome

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☆ Presented at the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngologists 2007 Spring Meeting at the Combined Otolaryngology Spring Meetings in San Diego, CA, USA on April 27, 2007.

PII: S0165-5876(10)00165-5

doi:10.1016/j.ijporl.2010.03.050

« Previous Next »International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
Volume 74, Issue 7 , Pages 768-772, July 2010

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