Children with spina bifida, a malformation of the spinal cord that can lead to mobility impairments and hydrocephalus — a buildup of fluid in the brain — face significant risk of cognitive difficulties throughout their lives. A new multi-center study led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Michigan Medicine finds that breathing problems during sleep are a widespread but often undetected issue among these babies and raises the possibility that early treatment might significantly improve cognitive development.
The study focused on newborns who had undergone surgery for myelomeningocele, the most severe form of spina bifida. While doctors have known that older children and adults with myelomeningocele often experience sleep disorders, this innovative research reveals that sleep problems begin much earlier than previously recognized and affect more than half of newborns with the condition.
The findings point to a significant opportunity for early intervention: identifying and treating sleep-disordered breathing in these high-risk infants might be an effective way to improve their cognitive development.
The study is published in Pediatrics Jan. 23.
“The vast majority of these newborns with breathing problems would have been completely undetected without the comprehensive sleep studies performed by our multidisciplinary research teams before hospital discharge,” said Renée Shellhaas, MD, the David T. Blasingame Professor of Neurology at WashU Medicine and lead author of the study, who also treats patients at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. “This research demonstrates how bringing together expertise from multiple specialties can identify critical but previously overlooked opportunities to improve outcomes for vulnerable infants.”