The Premature Baby Who Forgets to Breathe

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Abstract
EPISODES of apnea occur frequently, especially in the first days of life, in babies born prematurely. The commonest form of apnea is associated with periodic breathing, in which rhythmic ventilation is regularly interrupted by brief periods of apnea, much like Cheyne—Stokes respiration. During the apneic periods, there is no color change and little or no fall in heart rate, and ventilation resumes spontaneously. For descriptive purposes, periodic breathing can be distinguished from recurrent apneic episodes of longer duration, associated with cyanosis, accompanied by substantial fall in heart rate, and often terminated only by tactile or other stimulation. These episodes may . . .