Obstructive Sleep Apnoea and Down’s syndrome

Last updated on July 7th, 2023 at 02:01 pm

People with Down’s Syndrome are the demographic with the highest number of cases of sleep apnoea, almost exclusively OSA (Obstructive sleep apnoea). Research originally thought that around 100% of people with Down’s Syndrome had OSA, but it turns out to still be the very high percentage of 46%. This is because of several factors of the general anatomy of a person with Down’s Syndrome: The flatter mid-face, lower muscle tone in the upper airway, tongue and jaw, and a narrow nasopharyngeal area all contribute to the air way obstruction while sleeping meaning OSA.

Sleep Apnoea of any kind is always a more serious case if it is found in children, and because OSA is very common for children with Down’s Syndrome it is a very serious and worrying issue. For those children who have Down’s Syndrome and heart disease OSA could lead to heart problems due to Pulmonary Hypertension during an Apnoea. On top of this, due to the aforementioned weak muscle tone in the tongue, a much more serious obstruction in the airways could occur.

Sadly, the sleep problems for those with Down’s syndrome don’t stop there. Snoring is also very common due to a much larger soft pallet, and although snoring is not a problem in itself the volume of snoring is frequently higher than usual, which causes the brain to keep itself in the shallow stages of sleep and thus meaning a poorer quality night’s slumber.

http://www.ndss.org/Resources/Health-Care/Associated-Conditions/Obstructive-Sleep-Apnea–Down-Syndrome
http://downsyndrome.nacd.org/sleep_apnea.php