Poor sleep can have a negative impact on a child, making it difficult to concentrate at school and causing behavioral problems, among other issues. The Pediatric Sleep Disorders Program at the University of Michigan Health System is the only pediatric sleep program that also offers a multidisciplinary sleep clinic in the state of Michigan, and one of the largest in the country. We are dedicated to providing comprehensive assessment and treatment of infants, children and adolescents with a variety of sleep problems.
We evaluate a large number of sleep issues, including:
- Snoring/breathing difficulties
- Sleep related breathing disorders, including:
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea
- Central Sleep Apnea
- Apnea of Infancy
- Sleep-related hypoventilation
- Insomnia
- Bedtime refusal
- Disorders of the sleep/wake schedule
- Unusual movements or behaviors during sleep
- Nightmares
- Night terrors
- Sleepwalking
- Excessive daytime sleepiness
- Teeth grinding
- Restless leg syndrome
- Circadian rhythm disorders, such as delayed sleep phase in teenagers
- Disorders associated with excessive daytime sleepiness, such as narcolepsy
We carefully evaluate your child and take a comprehensive history by our board-certified sleep physician. Our multidisciplinary team is made up of a board-certified sleep medicine specialist, a developmental/ behavioral pediatrician and a pediatric psychologist, as well as sleep medicine and psychology fellows. Sleep studies are conducted at the Michael S. Aldrich Sleep Disorders Lab, one of the few centers of distinction for sleep medicine in the country, by sleep technicians trained in conducting sleep studies in children.
We also offer a multidisciplinary Prader-Willi clinic in conjunction with Pediatric Endocrinology and Orthopedics in the evaluation of sleep disorders in children with Prader-Willi syndrome.
Once a diagnosis is made, a wide range of effective treatment strategies is available. The majority of sleep problems can be improved, controlled or eliminated. For children with obstructive sleep apnea who are intolerant to with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or BiPAP, we will be offering an innovative alternative. We will offer in the one clinic visit, a visit with ear, nose and throat specialist, an orthodontist, a sleep medicine specialist and an oro-maxillofacial surgeon (specializes in bone and soft tissue reconstruction). The team of specialists will confer at the end of the visit and develops a treatment strategy that could include surgery, or a dental appliance to hold the jaw forward during sleep.
For children where sleep apnea (not breathing for two breaths or longer during sleep) is suspected but has never been identified, we offer esophageal pressure monitoring during a polysomnography sleep study. The procedure involves putting a thin tube down the nose to the esophagus with a little balloon on the end, which shows increased work during sleep. The procedure is well tolerated by patients. It allows us to diagnose sleep-related breathing disorders, even when other labs cannot identify them. Our sleep lab is one of very few in the country and the only one in Michigan to offer this type of monitoring.
Make an Appointment
To learn more or schedule an appointment, call 734-615-4302.