began
to stay up nights to keep watch over her son’s condition and noticed that
not only did he snore
but that he also appeared to be struggling to breathe.
She was convinced that her son’s breathing
problems
were putting his life in danger.
Aside from his laboured breathing
during sleep, Alain had not gained weight in two
years and began to develop behavioural issues such
as hyperactivity and frequent daytime drowsiness.
What Alain’s mother did not
know at the time was that Alain was suffering from
Pediatric Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Pediatric
OSA affects up to 3% of children between the ages of
2 and 13 and can result in long-term physical health
and behavioural problems – this is exactly what
Alain’s motherwas witnessing in her son.
Alain’s mother sought medical help for her son
for two years, this included frequent visits with Alain’s
pediatrician and numerous types of medical tests, all
of which failed to find anything seriously wrong. By
the time Alain reached four years of age, his snoring
and difficulty breathing during sleep had worsened.
In November 2005, Alain was referred to an Ear Nose
and Throat (ENT) specialist. After an examination of
Alain’s tonsils and adenoids, the specialist
suspected Pediatric OSA, and immediately referred Alain
to PHD Medical for a Respiratory Sleep Disorder Diagnostic
test.
Alain was tested on November
30th, 2005. His test results confirmed the doctor’s suspicion, and
showed that Alain suffered from significant and frequent
episodes of low oxygen levels in his blood throughout
the night. Finally – the root cause of Alain’s
medical problems was discovered – Alain was suffering
from severe Pediatric OSA.
The PHD Medical OSA evaluation
recommended a quick medical intervention, and the
ENT surgeon scheduled Alain for an emergency tonsillectomy
and adenoidectomy. Pediatric OSA is usually the result
of enlarged tonsils and/or adenoids, and the typical
prescribed treatment is to remove them. Alain received his surgery
at the Montreal Children’s Hospital on December
9th, 2005.
Almost immediately after the
surgery, Alain’s
mother, to her great relief, noticed a marked improvement
in her son’s breathing pattern during sleep.
He no longer snored loudly or struggled to breathe
and appeared to be sleeping and breathing normally
and comfortably, throughout the night. Two months after
the surgery a repeat test was done on Alain and the
results showed that his oxygen levels during sleep
had returned to normal.
Alain’s mother is relieved to see that not only
has Alain’s sleep improved, but that his weight
and demeanour have improved as well. “He
eats as much as before the surgery, except now he is
gaining weight - you can no longer count his ribs”,
his mother said, “it’s like he is a different
little boy – one who is a lot healthier and a lot
happier”.
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