OBESITY AND SLEEP-RELATED PATHOLOGY IN CHILDREN

Abstract

Obesity is a public health problem, with an important increase in prevalence in the last decades, pediatric population also fi ts these characteristics. Among the systemic complications of obesity is included the sleep – related respiratory pathology. The association obstructive sleep apnea – obesity is suspected in a child who snores, has sleep fragmentation and breathing pauses, but the diagnosis is confi rmed using polysomnography. Obstructive sleep apnea has many kinds of complications (increased by the association with obesity) – cardiac, metabolic, neurocognitive, all of them affecting the quality of life. The treatment of obstructive sleep apnea includes weight loss, adenotonsillectomy and CPAP ventilation.

Keywords

• obesity
• obstructive sleep apnea