Effects of Obstructive Sleep Apneas on Transcutaneous Oxygen Pressure in Control Infants, Siblings of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Victims, and Near Miss Infants: Comparison with the Effects of Central Sleep Apneas

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Abstract
To investigate the effects of obstructive sleep apneas upon transcutaneous PO2 [partial pressure], 75 polysomnograms recorded during night sessions in 25 control [human] infants, 25 siblings and 25 near-miss sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) infants were studied. These observations were compared to the decreases in transcutaneous PO2 measured during central sleep apneas in the same infants. During a total of 707.6 h of sleep, 33 obstructive apneas and 1650 central apneas were recorded. Obstructive apneas were seen in 3 control infants (3 episodes), 1 sibling (5) and 6 near-miss SIDS infants (25). The obstructive apneas tended to be short (< 10 s). Comparatively, the central apneas were equally distributed in the 3 groups of infants, and only the near-miss children presented apneas that lasted as long as 19 s. The decrease in transcutaneous PO2 was proportional to the duration of both types of apnea, but for a given duration the decrease in transcutaneous PO2 was significantly greater for the obstructive apneas than for the central apneas (with a mean difference of 7.59 .+-. 0.53% PO2). Hypoxic effects of the obstructive apneas might have important clinical implications in infants, such as the near-miss SIDS.