What's new in paediatric sleep in 2007?

In young children, sleep problems are associated with poorer mental and psychological health in their parents, although no clear causal relationship has been established to date. The increase in the number of children presenting with sleep problems puts increasing demand on polysomnography (PSG), which represents the gold standard for the diagnosis of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). However, PSG is expensive and very time and labour intensive. Screening tools have therefore been developed to identify children at risk for SDB and obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). Most interestingly, position during sleep influences motor development in infants, with the supine position being associated with significant delays in motor development and the acquisition of motor milestones. The majority of publications have dealt with the neurocognitive consequences of SDB and OSA, and more precisely, individual susceptibility for these adverse effects, involving the level of systemic inflammation as well as the polymorphisms of some genes with a neuroprotective role.