Sleep and respiratory physiology in children.

Maturational changes of breathing during sleep contribute to the unique features of childhood sleep disorders. The clinician's ability to evaluate common disorders related to sleep in children relies on an understanding of normal patterns of breathing during sleep across the ages. This article reviews respiratory physiology during sleep throughout childhood. Specific topics include an overview of respiration during sleep, normal parameters through childhood including respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, and measures of carbon dioxide, normal patterns of apneas throughout childhood, and features of breathing during sleep seen in term and preterm infants.