AASM Membership Sections Newsletter
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Issue # 4
American Academy
of Sleep Medicine
4
Mixed Apnea in Pediatric Patients
This image demonstrates a mixed apnea in a pediatric patient as defined in the 2007 AASM scoring guide-
lines. In this example (arrow), 1. There is a > 90% drop in amplitude of nasal thermal sensor signal compared
to baseline, 2. It lasts for a duration spanning over greater than 2 breaths and 3. It is associated with mild
respiratory effort in the initial portion of the event and followed by complete loss of respiratory effort (complete
flattening of thoracic and abdominal effort signals) in the later portion of the event.
The new scoring guidelines recommend scoring of mixed apnea in children under age 18 years of age as
follows:
Score an apnea as mixed if
1.
The event is associated with a >90% fall in the signal amplitude for >90% of the entire respiratory
event compared to the pre-event baseline amplitude
2.
It meets apnea criteria for at least the duration of 2 breaths during baseline breathing and
3.
The event is associated with absent respiratory effort during one portion of the event and the presence
of inspiratory effort in another portion, regardless of which portion comes first.
