Apparent life-threatening event syndrome predominantly affects children younger than one year. This syndrome is characterized by a frightening constellation of symptoms in which the child exhibits some combination of apnea, change in color, change in muscle tone, coughing, or gagging. Approximately 50 percent of these children are diagnosed with an underlying condition that explains the apparen...

In sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) apnea is the terminal event; whether or not an obstructive apnea is the primary event is unknown. Collapse of the pliable pharyngeal airway during life would not be detected after death and is therefore hard to prove. The distinctive distribution of petechiae at necropsy can be explained by negative intrathoracic pressure before death suggesting upper airw...

OBJECTIVES We sought to determine the yield of cardiac testing and to identify predictors of cardiac disease in infants with an apparent life-threatening event (ALTE). DESIGN Retrospective longitudinal cohort study. SETTING Paediatric hospital providing primary and tertiary care that is part of an integrated healthcare system. PATIENTS Infants hospitalised for an ALTE from 1999 to 2003. ...

Benzodiazepines are one of the most frequently prescribed psychotropic drugs during pregnancy. Despite the fact that these drugs have been in use for a long time, there is still debate about the safety for the developing fetus and neonate. We present a case of a newborn with an apparent life-threatening event shortly after birth following maternal temazepam use during labour and advise to be re...

OBJECTIVES To determine how often the pediatric otolaryngology service is involved in the initial care of infants with an apparent life-threatening event (ALTE), to assess the usefulness of bronchoscopy and laryngoscopy in diagnosing the underlying etiology, and to describe the long-term airway outcomes and whether these patients were seen by the pediatric otolaryngology service over a 5-year f...