Journal of applied physiology
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Apnea and periodic breathing in bed-sharing and solitary sleeping infants.
Mother-infant bed sharing, compared with the solitary sleeping condition, has recently been associated with several physiological and behavioral effects. Because the physiological effects of bed sharing may also include respiratory changes, we compared the incidence of central and obstructive apneas and periodic breathing in bed-sharing and solitary sleeping infants. Twenty routinely bed-sharing mother-infant pairs and fifteen routinely solitary sleeping pairs slept for 3 nights in a sleep laboratory. ⋯ In both groups, there was a significantly higher frequency of periodic breathing events on the bed-sharing night than on the solitary night. These findings demonstrate that the bed-sharing environment can have a significant impact on respiratory control in the infant. Evidence is also presented to suggest that routine bed sharing may result in subtle neurophysiological and/or developmental differences in infants.