title: Effects of race on upper airway dynamic function during sleep in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Studies in adults and children have shown that African American race is a risk factor for the obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Therefore, we hypothesized that non-obese, non-snoring African American children would have a more collapsible upper airway during sleep than age-, gender-, and size-matched Caucasians.
  
  
  METHODS
  Upper airway dynamic function was measured during sleep in normal African American and Caucasian children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sleep laboratory.
  
  
  METHODS
  56 normal children between the ages of 8-18 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pressure-flow relationships were measured during NREM sleep. Nasal pressure was decreased to subatmospheric levels, using previously described techniques that resulted in an activated and relatively hypotonic upper airway.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The activated and hypotonic critical pressures (Pcrit) were -25 (-25, -3) (median, range) and -19 (-25, -3) for African Americans, and -25 (-25, -4) and -25 (-25.0, -4) cm H(2)O, respectively, for Caucasians. The slopes of the pressure-flow response (SPF) under activated and hypotonic conditions for African Americans were 10 (-9, 46) and 13 (-20, 46), and for Caucasians 9 (-9, 64) and 8 (-5, 54) mL/s/cm H(2)O, respectively. There were no significant differences between groups for Pcrit or SPF under either activated or hypotonic conditions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Upper airway collapsibility was similar in asymptomatic, non-obese African American and Caucasian children. Differences in upper airway characteristics and neuromotor function cannot explain the increased prevalence of OSAS in African American children.
authors: The Sleep Center and the 2Clinical and Translational Research Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors: Swaroop
authors: S
authors: Pinto
authors: Jingtao
authors: J
authors: Huang
authors: Ignacio
authors: I
authors: Tapia
authors: Laurie
authors: L
authors: Karamessinis
authors: Michelle
authors: M
authors: Pepe
authors: Paul R
authors: PR
authors: Gallagher
authors: Ruth
authors: R
authors: Bradford
authors: Tomas
authors: T
authors: Nixon
authors: Ngoon-Yin
authors: NY
authors: Lee
authors: Carole L
authors: CL
authors: Marcus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American; D002648:Child; D045422:Continuous Positive Airway Pressure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017286:Polysomnography; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D044465:White People