The purpose of the present study was to determine the risk factors and their respective magnitudes for developing Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) in Down’s Syndrome (DS) patients. The Kids’ Inpatient Database (KID) was queried to identify all patients diagnosed with DS. The primary predictor variables were Tonsillar Hypertrophy (TH), Adenoidal Hypertrophy (AH), Hypertrophy of Tonsils & Adenoids (HTA), Laryngeal Stenosis (LS), Hypotonia, Glossoptosis, Congenital Laryngomalacia (CL), and Overweight & Obesity (OO). The primary outcome variable was OSA. Statistical analyses were based on the univariate and multivariate logistic regression models and level of significance was set at P < 0.05. The final sample consisted of 18,181 patients with a diagnosis of Down’s syndrome. Relative to patients aged 0-5, patients aged 6-10 (OR 3.5, P < 0.01), 11-5 (OR 3.4, P < 0.01), and 16 & above (OR 3.6, P < 0.01) were each independently associated with increased odds of OSA. Further, TH (OR 23.2, P < 0.01), AH (OR 20.3, P < 0.01), HTA (OR 64.2, P < 0.01), glossoptosis (OR 5.0, P < 0.01), CL (OR 4.3, P < 0.01), and OO (OR 3.7, P < 0.01) were all independent risk factors for OSA. The presence of hypertrophied tonsils and adenoids together was the strongest risk factor for OSA. DS patients aged six and above were at risk for OSA development relative to younger patients. Patients with DS should be tested for OSA, which otherwise will deteriorate their existing comorbidities.

Dani Stanbouly is a second-year dental student at the renown ivy league institution, Columbia University. Despite being at the infancy of his research/clinical career, he has already achieved over 20 scientific publications in reputable journals, including JAMA Otolaryngology—Head & Neck Surgery and Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. He was a recipient of NIDCR summer dental student award, where he had the opportunity to conduct research at the National Institute of Health (NIH). Further, he was granted Columbia University summer research fellowship honours due to his endeavours in research during the summer semester between his first and second years of Dental School. He plans to pursue training in oral & maxillofacial surgery upon graduating from Dental School. He is ever so grateful for his current mentors, which include Sung-Kiang Chuang, former clinical professor at Harvard School of Dental Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, Dr. Michael R. Markiewicz, chair of the University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine department of oral and maxillofacial surgery, and Dr. Jeffrey A. Ascherman, director of the cleft and craniofacial team of the Children’s Hospital of New York-Presbyterian.