Neighborhood Disadvantage, Quality of Life, and Symptom Burden in Children with Mild Sleep-disordered Breathing

Rationale: Neighborhood disadvantage (ND) has been associated with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in children. However, the association between ND and SDB symptom burden and quality of life (QOL) has not yet been studied.Objectives: To evaluate associations between ND with SDB symptom burden and QOL.Methods: Cross-sectional analyses were performed on 453 children, ages 3-12.9 years, with mild SDB (habitual snoring and apnea-hypopnea index < 3/h) enrolled in the PATS (Pediatric Adenotonsillectomy Trial for Snoring) multicenter study. The primary exposure, neighborhood disadvantage, was characterized by the Child Opportunity Index (COI) (range, 0-100), in which lower values (specifically COI ⩽ 40) signify less advantageous neighborhoods. The primary outcomes were QOL assessed by the obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)-18 questionnaire (range, 18-126) and SDB symptom burden assessed by the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire-Sleep-related Breathing Disorder (PSQ-SRBD) scale (range, 0-1). The primary model was adjusted for age, sex, race, ethnicity, maternal education, recruitment site, and season. In addition, we explored the role of body mass index (BMI) percentile, environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and asthma in these associations.Results: The sample included 453 children (16% Hispanic, 26% Black or African American, 52% White, and 6% other). COI mean (standard deviation [SD]) was 50.3 (29.4), and 37% (n = 169) of participants lived in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Poor SDB-related QOL (OSA-18 ⩾ 60) and high symptom burden (PSQ-SRBD ⩾ 0.33) were found in 30% (n = 134) and 75% (n = 341) of participants, respectively. In adjusted models, a COI increase by 1 SD (i.e., more advantageous neighborhood) was associated with an improvement in OSA-18 score by 2.5 points (95% confidence interval [CI], -4.34 to -0.62) and in PSQ-SRBD score by 0.03 points (95% CI, -0.05 to -0.01). These associations remained significant after adjusting for BMI percentile, ETS, or asthma; however, associations between COI and SDB-related QOL attenuated by 23% and 10% after adjusting for ETS or asthma, respectively.Conclusions: Neighborhood disadvantage was associated with poorer SDB-related QOL and greater SDB symptoms. Associations were partially attenuated after considering the effects of ETS or asthma. The findings support efforts to reduce ETS and neighborhood-level asthma-related risk factors and identify other neighborhood-level factors that contribute to SDB symptom burden as strategies to address sleep-health disparities.Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02562040).

Multilevel Risk Factors for Sleep-Disordered Breathing-Related Symptom Burden in an Urban Pediatric Community-Based Sample

BACKGROUND

Pediatric sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) disproportionately affects children with low socioeconomic status (SES). The multilevel risk factors that drive these associations are not well understood.

RESEARCH QUESTION

What are the associations between SDB risk factors, including individual health conditions (obesity, asthma, and allergies), household SES (maternal education), indoor exposures (environmental tobacco smoke [ETS] and pests), and neighborhood characteristics (neighborhood disadvantage), and pediatric SDB symptoms?

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Cross-sectional analyses were performed on 303 children (aged 6-12 years) enrolled in the Environmental Assessment of Sleep Youth study from 2018 to 2022. Exposures were determined by caregiver reports, assays of measured settled dust from the child's bedroom, and neighborhood-level Census data (deriving the Childhood Opportunity Index to characterize neighborhood disadvantage). The primary outcome was the SDB-related symptom burden assessed by the OSA-18 questionnaire total score. Using linear regression models, we calculated associations between exposures and SDB-related symptom burden, adjusting for sociodemographic factors, then health conditions, indoor environment, and neighborhood factors.

RESULTS

The sample included 303 children (39% Hispanic, Latino, Latina, or Spanish origin; 30% Black or African American; 22% White; and 11% other). Increasing OSA-18 total scores were associated with low household SES after adjustment for demographic factors, and with asthma, allergies, ETS, pests (mouse, cockroach, and rodents), and an indoor environmental index (sum of the presence of pests and ETS; 0-2) after adjusting for sociodemographic factors. Even after further adjusting for asthma, allergies, and neighborhood disadvantage, ETS and pest exposure were associated with OSA-18 (ETS: β = 12.80; 95% CI, 7.07-18.53, also adjusted for pest; pest exposure: β = 3.69; 95% CI, 0.44-6.94, also adjusted for ETS).

INTERPRETATION

In addition to associations with ETS, a novel association was observed for indoor pest exposure and SDB symptom burden. Strategies to reduce household exposure to ETS and indoor allergens should be tested as approaches for reducing sleep health disparities.

Disparities in Sleep-Disordered Breathing: Upstream Risk Factors, Mechanisms, and Implications

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) refers to a spectrum of disorders ranging from habitual snoring without frank episodes of obstructed breathing or desaturation during sleep to obstructive sleep apnea, where apneas and hypopneas repetitively occur with resultant intermittent hypoxia, arousal, and sleep disruption. Disparities in SDB reflect its overall high prevalence in children and adults from racially and ethnically minoritized or low socioeconomic status backgrounds coupled with high rates of underdiagnosis and suboptimal treatment.

0514 Risk Factors for Symptoms and Signs of Sleep Apnea Impacting Quality of Life in an Urban Pediatric Community-Based Sample

Introduction

Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) disproportionately affects children from minority groups and children living in disadvantaged neighborhoods, but the risk factors that drive this risk are not well understood. We investigated the relationship between minority race/ethnicity, household risk factors (smoking, socio-economic status [SES]), and neighborhood disadvantage with OSA-related quality of life (QOL) scores in participants in the Environmental Assessment of Sleep Youth (EASY) observational study.

Methods

Families of children 5-12 years old recruited from largely low-income Boston-area neighborhoods participated in an extensive in-home evaluation of OSA risk factors. OSA-related QOL was assessed with parent-reported OSA-18 questionnaire (values &gt;37 indicative of negative impact of symptoms and signs of OSA on QOL). Secondhand smoking (SHS) was defined by parent-report of smoking in the home. Neighborhood disadvantage was characterized using geocoded addresses, calculating the Neighborhood Socioeconomic (NSES) index. We performed logistic regression with OSA-18 &gt;37 as the dependent variable and age, gender, race/ethnicity, BMI, household smoking, household measures of SES and NSES index as independent variables.

Results

The sample included 256 children (40%-Hispanic ethnicity, 31%-Black, 20%-White, 9%-Other; 56% were female), with a mean age 9.1±1.9 and BMI percentile 69.9±29.8. 33% and 40% of children were from households with income &lt;$25,000 and $25,000-$75,000, respectively, and 10% had SHS exposure. Mean NSES index was 47.9±15.4 (national average of 50). An elevated OSA-18 was reported for 35% of participants and significantly associated with Hispanic ethnicity and smoking exposure (OR=2.16, CI 1.01-4.62 and OR=2.71, CI 1.2-6.3) after adjusting for age, gender, and BMI percentile. Further adjustment for family income attenuated the association of OSA-18 with Hispanic ethnicity, but a significant association with household smoking persisted. NSES index and BMI percentile were not associated with OSA-18.

Conclusion

High symptoms and signs of OSA impacting QOL were associated with Hispanic ethnicity, household smoking and SES in this diverse cohort of children living in urban and predominantly low-income communities. The study points to the need for strategies to reduce household smoking as one strategy for decreasing sleep health disparities, and the further need to understand other factors associated with low SES that increase risk for poor sleep health.

Support (If Any)

NIH-NHLBI/T32HL007901, R35HL1358181, P30ES000002, K24AI106822, R01Hl137192, K23ES031663

Polysomnography-guided mandibular distraction osteogenesis in Pierre Robin sequence patients

STUDY OBJECTIVES

Craniofacial malformations with micrognathia cause high grades of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) measured by polysomnography (PSG). Mandibular Distraction Osteogenesis (MDO) is a novel procedure for upper airway obstruction (UAO) relief. Our primary objective was to describe the utilization of PSGs to improve obstruction in patients undergoing mandibular distraction.

METHODS

This is a retrospective study. Patients with micrognathia and severe UAO, presenting with severe OSA diagnosed by PSG, were included from a single tertiary care center between 2015-2019. PSGs were done: (1) prior to surgery, (2) once cosmetic goal was achieved (Post-Op 1) (3) if residual moderate-to-severe OSA was seen, every 2 nights until mild or no OSA was achieved (Post-Op 2).

RESULTS

Thirteen patients were included. The median age at surgery was 1.1months (10 days-3 months). All thirteen patients had baseline severe OSA, with a median obstructive apnea-hypopnea index (OAHI) of 33 events/h and a median O₂ nadir of 73%. Post-Op 1 PSG was done at a median of 6 days after surgery. Median first post-operative OAHI in all 13 patients was 6.8 events/h, with a median O₂ nadir of 87%. A median additional distraction of 3 mm was needed beyond the traditionally recommended advancement. Long term follow-up studies at or after 1year were done in 5 patients, all showing persistent non-severe OSA.

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first case-series utilizing PSGs as a guide for MDO in patients with micrognathia showing the need for jaw over-correction to achieve resolution of OSA.

Human Rhinovirus Infection of the Respiratory Tract Affects Sphingolipid Synthesis

The 17q21 asthma susceptibility locus includes asthma risk alleles associated with decreased sphingolipid synthesis, likely resulting from increased expression of ORMDL3. ORMDL3 inhibits serine-palmitoyl transferase (SPT), the rate limiting enzyme of de novo sphingolipid synthesis. There is evidence that decreased sphingolipid synthesis is critical to asthma pathogenesis. Children with asthma and 17q21 asthma risk alleles display decreased sphingolipid synthesis in blood cells. Reduced SPT activity results in airway hyperreactivity, a hallmark feature of asthma. 17q21 asthma risk alleles are also linked to childhood infections with human rhinovirus (RV). This study evaluates the interaction of RV with the de novo sphingolipid synthesis pathway, and the alterative effects of concurrent SPT inhibition in SPT-deficient mice and human airway epithelial cells. In mice, RV infection shifted lung sphingolipid synthesis gene expression to a pattern that resembles genetic SPT deficiency, including decreased expression of Sptssa, a small SPT subunit. This pattern was pronounced in lung EpCAM+ epithelial cells and reproduced in human bronchial epithelial cells. RV did not affect Sptssa expression in lung CD45+ immune cells. RV increased sphingolipids unique to the de novo synthesis pathway in mouse lung and human airway epithelial cells. Interestingly, these de novo sphingolipid species were reduced in the blood of RV infected, wild-type mice. RV exacerbated SPT-deficiency-associated airway hyperreactivity. Airway inflammation was similar in RV-infected wild-type and SPT deficient mice. This study reveals the effects of RV infection on the de novo sphingolipid synthesis pathway, elucidating a potential mechanistic link between 17q21 asthma risk alleles and rhinoviral infection.

Polysomnography use in complex term and preterm infants to facilitate evaluation and management in the neonatal intensive care unit

STUDY OBJECTIVES

1. To determine the characteristics of term and preterm infants for which polysomnography (PSG) was used as a primary diagnostic tool in infants with recurrent desaturation episodes, suspected obstructive apnea or both, and the prevalence of abnormal studies. 2. To identify the interventions following PSGs. 3. To assess the added value of airway and swallow evaluations.

METHODS

Retrospective cohort study of infants evaluated by PSG in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at NYP-Weill Cornell from January 2012 to April 2018.

RESULTS

PSGs were performed on 31 infants; 15 (48%) term and 16 (52%) preterm infants. Indications for PSG were persistent desaturations (n=24), suspected obstructive apnea (n=15), and stridor (n=2). Primary comorbid conditions were respiratory (n=11), craniofacial (n=9), airway anomalies (n=6) and neurologic (n=5). The apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) was abnormal in 30 (97%) infants. Of those, 23 (74%) were severe, seven (23%) were moderate, and normal in one (3%). Apneic events were predominantly obstructive in 23 infants and predominantly central in 6. AHI improved in all but one follow-up PSG. The PSG findings resulted in interventions in 24 (77%) infants, in addition to concomitant otolaryngology evaluations (abnormal in 20/25) and swallow studies (abnormal in 9/14). Clinical signs completely resolved in 22 (71%) infants.

CONCLUSIONS

This is one of the first reports on the diagnostic value of inpatient PSGs in the NICU in infants with recurrent desaturation episodes, suspected obstructive apnea or both. Our findings indicate that PSG is an important tool in evaluating and targeting therapies in complex term and preterm infants with a wide variety of comorbidities.

Social and legal implications of urine drug screen analysis in the neonate: A case of suspected specimen mishandling

BACKGROUND

The legal implications associated with illicit drug use during pregnancy are significant, as providers are required to notify child protective services when a drug-exposed infant is identified.

CASE REPORT

The case presented involves possible specimen mishandling in two infants at risk for in utero drug exposure and describes alternative methodologies available to confirm specimen identity.

CONCLUSIONS

It is critical that institutions establish and adhere to stringent procedures when screening newborns.

Congenital second-degree heart block and total anomalous pulmonary venous return associated with microduplication of 1q32.2

We report a term female infant with congenital heart block and total anomalous of pulmonary venous return. The results of single nucleotide polymorphism oligonucleotide microarray analysis showed an interstitial duplication of approximately 818 Kb, which involved 11 genes, including the entire LAMB3 gene which is known to associate with cardiac conduction defect. Our report adds to the collective knowledge that the cardiac conduction defect is a clinical feature of chromosome 1q32.2 duplication.

MICRODUPLICATION OF 17p[DUP(17)(12p11.2)]: REPORT OF A NEONATE WITH A SPINA BIFIDA AND CARDIAC ANOMALIES AND A LITERATURE REVIEW

Duplication 17pll.2 syndrome is a recent recognized syndrome with multiple congenital anomalies and mental retardation. Most patients with duplication 17p11.2 syndrome harbor a common 3.7 Mb duplication (17p.11.2 duplication syndrome) resulting in congenital anomalies, neurodevelopmental and behavioral phenotypes. We report a case with spina bifida, tetralogy of Fallot and a small duplication (932 Kb) of 17pl1.2 containing approximately 20 genes, detected by array-CGH. We describe clinical features not reported previously for microduplication of 17p11.2.