Neonatal apnoea is a condition that affects newborn babies. Those with the condition experience periods of between 10 and 20 seconds where they do not take a breath. This can be caused by several things, including a neurological deficit where the brain is not telling the lungs to breathe or by a blockage that is preventing the baby from breathing.
Regardless of what the cause of neonatal apnoea is, it is important to have it diagnosed, preferably while the baby is still at the hospital or birthing centre. Neonatal apnoea can happen to any baby, but it is most common with babies born prematurely or to those with a congenital condition or infection that affects breathing.
Luckily, neonatal apnoea is very easy to spot and is typically very treatable. In some instances, the condition will even go away on its own without treatment. However, whether your baby needs treatment or not, it is important to have their condition diagnosed and monitored by a medical professional.
In cases of very mild and intermittent neonatal apnoea, your doctor may recommend a wait-and-see approach. This is typically only when periods of not breathing are ten seconds or less and happen very infrequently. It is also typically the approach with full-term babies, whereas premature ones almost always need treatment.
A wait-and-see approach can be difficult for parents, however, because of how frightening it is when your baby is not breathing. Therefore, if you are not comfortable with this, make sure your healthcare provider knows so they can come up with an alternative treatment.
When a wait-and-see approach is not the right option, the first course of treatment for neonatal apnoea is usually medications. Medications, specifically bronchodilators, are drugs that stimulate the central nervous system while also relaxing the smooth muscles in the lungs and airways. Theophylline and caffeine nitrate are two of the most common medications used to treat neonatal apnoea, and they can usually keep your baby breathing non-stop.
While medications are usually enough to treat and cure neonatal apnoea, this is not always the case. If your baby has frequent periods of not breathing and it gets to the point where they are on the verge of passing out or suffocating, your doctor will put them on a ventilator or oxygen therapy. These forms of breathing assistance will force air into your baby’s lungs to keep them alive.
When they no longer need oxygen therapy all the time but still require assistance while sleeping, your doctor may recommend a CPAP machine. CPAP machines force oxygen into your baby’s airways, compensating for times when their apnoea would normally flare up.
In addition to medications and breathing assistance, there are also home remedies that can help with neonatal apnoea, including the following:
Additionally, if you take your baby home and they are still considered an apnoea risk, they may give you an apnoea alarm. This alarm is connected to the baby and is designed to go off if they stop breathing so that you can take corrective action.
While neonatal apnoea can be frightening for new parents, it is somewhat common and very treatable. In most cases, babies will outgrow their apnoea within one to two weeks of birth and live perfectly normal lives. However, in situations where the condition does not go away, there could be an underlying condition that is causing it. If this happens, your doctor will need to diagnose and treat the underlying condition to cure the apnoea.