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The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is higher in children with sickle cell disease (SCD) as compared with the general pediatric population. It has been speculated that overgrowth of the adenoid and tonsils is an important contributor. ⋯ Children with SCD have reduced upper airway size due to overgrowth of the surrounding lymphoid tissues, which may explain their predisposition to OSAS.
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There is no consensus at the present time about the effect of welding on lung function decline. This study compared lung function decline between blue-collar workers exposed and not exposed to welding fumes in a French longitudinal cohort of 21,238 subjects aged 37 to 52 years at inclusion. ⋯ Blue-collar workers exposed to welding fumes showed accelerated decline in lung function, which, in nonsmokers, was related to weekly duration of exposure.
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Esophageal pressure monitoring during polysomnography in children offers a gold-standard, “preferred” assessment for work of breathing, but is not commonly used in part because prospective data on incremental clinical utility are scarce. We compared a standard pediatric apnea/hypopnea index to quantitative esophageal pressures as predictors of apnea-related neurobehavioral morbidity and treatment response. ⋯ Quantitative esophageal pressure monitoring may add predictive value for some, if not all, neurobehavioral outcomes of sleep-disordered breathing.