Signs of Asthma in a Sleeping Child

Overview

Asthma is the most common chronic illness in children worldwide. It occurs when the airways become inflamed, causing the muscles around the bronchial tubes to tighten and contract, and producing excessive amounts of mucus. At night, the airways become more hyper-responsive, resulting in more severe and frequent symptoms, according to a review published in the January 2009 issue of "McGill Journal of Medicine" by Dr. Darrell Ginsberg.

Severity

In a sleeping child, asthma signs and symptoms become more exaggerated. According to Dr. Ginsberg, wheezing, cough and breathing may become worse during sleep. Wheezing or whistling sounds may become louder and more pronounced. Breathing may become more difficult and cause the skin around the ribs or neck to pull in. Cough also becomes worse late at night, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. The airways also become more responsive and easily react to the environment when the child is asleep.

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Cause

According to Dr. Ginsberg, the airways become more inflamed and hyper-reactive following a circadian rhythm at 4 a.m. Sleep can also make the lung functions worse and tend to make asthma symptoms more severe because the sleeping child may not compensate for the lack of oxygen. A sleeping child also may not be able to increase his capacity to take in more air during an attack, compared to when he is awake.

Diagnosis

The gold standards for diagnosing asthma include a medical exam, clinical history and a test for the amount of airflow. However, testing for accurate airflow is not possible while a child is asleep, notes Dr. Ginsberg. Hence, a better alternative is diagnosing nocturnal wheeze using a computerized monitoring device.

Effects on Sleep

Worsening signs of asthma at night may result in poor sleep quality for the child, relates Dr. Ginsberg. Children may wake up more frequently at night because of their symptoms. Intermittent wheezing also makes falling back to sleep more difficult for the child. Children may also become sleepier during the day. Parents of children with asthma also tend to become more moody and feel hassled as they themselves lack sleep, comments Dr. Ginsberg.

Effects on Life

According to Dr. Ginsberg, nocturnal asthma may also result in behavior problems related to lack of sleep. Children may also develop emotional problems, learning disabilities, miss school more, and poorer performance in school, notes a study in the September 2000 issue of "Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine." Parents of children suffering from nocturnal asthma also tend to miss more workdays.