Is childhood obstructive sleep apnoea an independent risk factor of hypertension in adulthood?

Over a third of children snore when they are asleep and until the last decade this has been considered benign by both parents and health professionals. Snoring was considered something that children would simply grow out of. Snoring is the hallmark symptom of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), which ranges in severity from simple or primary snoring to obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) which affects up to 6% of children.1 The incidence of SDB peaks in the preschool years when the size of the adenoids and tonsils—the primary cause of paediatric SDB—peaks in relation to the bony skeleton. In addition, childhood obesity increases the risk of OSA, particularly in older children. In adults, OSA is recognised as an independent risk factor for hypertension and reduced nocturnal dipping …