OTO: Polysomnographic Oxygen Saturation Findings for Preteen Children versus Adolescents

This podcast highlights original research published in the January 2018 issue of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, the official journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) Foundation. Home oximetry is commonly used to screen for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in children; however, normal oxygen desaturation levels by disease severity are not well known. It was our objective to determine if oxygen saturation levels differed by OSA severity category in children and if these differences were similar for preteen children and adolescents. In conclusion, adolescents have longer sleep times and higher obstructive apnea-hypopnea indexes than preteens, but oxygen saturations and desaturation indices were similar. This supports current triage algorithms for children with OSA, as we found no significant age-based differences   Click here to read the full article.