Associations between frontal lobe structure, parent-reported obstructive sleep disordered breathing and childhood behavior in the ABCD dataset

AbstractParents frequently report behavioral problems among children who snore. Our understanding of the relationship between symptoms of obstructive sleep disordered breathing (oSDB) and childhood behavioral problems associated with brain structural alterations is limited. Here, we examine the associations between oSDB symptoms, behavioral measures such as inattention, and brain morphometry in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study comprising 10,140 preadolescents. We observe that parent-reported symptoms of oSDB are associated with composite and domain-specific problem behaviors measured by parent responses to the Child Behavior Checklist. Alterations of brain structure demonstrating the strongest negative associations with oSDB symptoms are within the frontal lobe. The relationships between oSDB symptoms and behavioral measures are mediated by significantly smaller volumes of multiple frontal lobe regions. These results provide population-level evidence for an association between regional structural alterations in cortical gray matter and problem behaviors reported in children with oSDB.

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Increased Behavioral Problems in Children with Sleep-Disordered Breathing

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1102431/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Eszter Csabi ◽

Veronika Gaál ◽

Emese Hallgató ◽

Rebeka Anna Schulcz ◽

Gábor Katona ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Problems ◽

Sleep Disturbances ◽

Sleep Disordered Breathing ◽

Child Behavior Checklist ◽

Rating Scales ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Apnea Hypopnea Index ◽

Primary Snoring ◽

Obstructive Sleep ◽

Disordered Breathing

Abstract Introduction: Healthy sleep is essential for children’s cognitive, behavioral, and emotional development. Therefore, this study was aimed to assess the behavioral consequences of sleep disturbances examining children with sleep-disordered breathing compared to control participants. Methods: 78 children with SDB (average age: 6.7 years (SD = 1.83); 61 had OSA and 17 had primary snoring) and 156 control subjects (average age: 6.57 years (SD = 1.46) participated in the study. We matched the groups in age (t(232) = 0.578, p = 0.564) and gender (χ2(1) = 2.192, p = 0.139). In the SDB group, the average Apnea-Hypopnea Index was 3.44 event/h (SD = 4.00), the average desaturation level was 87.3 % (SD = 6.91). Parent-report rating scales were used to measure the children’s daytime behavior including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and Child Behavior Checklist. Results: Our results showed that children with SDB exhibited a higher level of inattentiveness and hyperactive behavior. Furthermore, the SDB group demonstrated more internalizing (anxiety, depression, somatic complaints, social problems) (p < 0.001) and externalizing (aggressive and rule-breaking behavior) problems compare to children without SDB, irrespective of severity. Conclusion: Based on our findings we supposed that even snoring and mild OSA had a risk for developing behavioral and emotional dysfunctions as much as moderate-severe OSA. Therefore, clinical research and practice need to focus more on the accurate assessment and treatment of sleep disturbances in childhood, particularly primary snoring, and mild obstructive sleep apnea.

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