Affective-respiratory attacks. Breath holding attacks - causes, treatment

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Affective-respiratory attacks. Breath holding attacks - causes, treatment
Affective-respiratory attacks. Breath holding attacks - causes, treatment
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Affective-respiratory seizures (ARP) are sudden stops in breathing that occur at the height of inspiration at the time when the child hits, frightened or cries. At the same time, the baby may turn pale or even turn blue, which, of course, frightens his parents very much, who do not know what is happening to him and how to help him.

In this article we will dwell on this problem in detail, considering at the same time the causes of the named paroxysm, and methods of its treatment.

What is ARP

Affective-respiratory attacks, from the point of view of physicians, are the earliest manifestation of fainting or hysterical seizures.

affective respiratory attacks
affective respiratory attacks

To better understand what exactly is happening with your baby, you should first decipher the name of the concept we are considering. The word "affect" denotes a very strong uncontrollable emotion, and everything related to the concept of "respiratory" is associated with the respiratory organs. This means that ARP is a violation of the breathing process, combined in some way with the emotional sphere of the child. And, as researchers have proven, excitable, spoiled and capricious children are more susceptible to them.

The first affective-respiratory attacks begin, as a rule, after six months of the baby's age and continue until about 4-6 years.

By the way, I would like to draw the attention of parents that holding their breath in children occurs involuntarily and not on purpose, although from the outside everything looks as if the baby is pretending. The described paroxysm is rather a manifestation of a pathological reflex that is triggered during crying, at the moment when the baby exhales most of the air from the lungs at once.

What does the moment of holding the breath of a crying baby look like

Affective-respiratory paroxysm most often occurs at a time when the child cries a lot. So to speak, at the peak of his indignation at the current situation.

affective respiratory attacks in a child
affective respiratory attacks in a child

During such a noisy manifestation of emotions, the child may suddenly calm down abruptly and, opening his mouth, not utter a sound. At the same time, breathing can stop for 30-45 seconds, the baby's face becomes pale or turns blue, depending on the circumstances, and at this time the parents themselves are ready to lose consciousness.

By the way, it depends on how the baby looks at the time of crying, and depends on what type of seizure you observe. They are conditionally divided into the so-called "pale" and "blue".

Types of breath holding attacks

"Pale" affective-respiratory attacks in a child occur as a pain reaction at the time of a fall, bruise, injection, while the baby sometimes does not even have time to cry. At this time, the child may not have a pulse, and this type of attack is similar to fainting in adults. By the way, often such a state in the future and flows into fainting.

And the "blue" attacks are the "top point" of the expression of anger, rage and discontent. In babies, paroxysms develop in most cases according to this type. If it is impossible to get what is required or to achieve the desired, the child begins to scream and cry. As he inhales, his shallow but deep breathing stops and his face turns slightly blue.

Most often, the condition normalizes on its own, but sometimes the baby may experience tonic muscle tension or, conversely, a decrease in their tone. Outwardly, this manifests itself in the fact that the child suddenly tenses up and arches or goes limp, which, by the way, also does not last long and passes on its own.

affective respiratory paroxysm
affective respiratory paroxysm

Are seizures dangerous for a child

Concerned parents should immediately be warned that the described paroxysms do not pose any serious danger to the he alth and life of a crying baby.

Call an ambulance only if the child's breathing has stopped for more than a minute. And you should consult a doctor with frequent (more than once a week) attacks, as well as in cases where they are modified: they start differently, they end differently, or if unusual symptoms are found at the time of the paroxysm.

If you observe affective-respiratory attacks in a child, the main thing is not to be nervous, try to help him restore his breathing by gently patting his cheeks, blowing on his face, splashing water on him or tickling his body. This is usually successful and the baby begins to breathe normally. After the attack, hug the baby, encourage and continue to do your job without showing concern.

A child has seizures: causes

If holding the breath during an attack lasts more than 60 seconds, the child may lose consciousness and go limp. Such an attack in medicine is classified as atonic non-epileptic. This condition is caused by a lack of oxygen in the brain and, by the way, occurs as a protective reaction to hypoxia (after all, in an unconscious state, the brain requires much less oxygen).

convulsions causes
convulsions causes

Further paroxysm turns into a tonic non-epileptic seizure. In a child at this moment, the body stiffens, stretches or arches. If hypoxia has not stopped, then clonic convulsions may develop - twitching of the arms, legs and the whole body of the baby.

Holding the breath causes the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the body (the so-called state of hypercapnia), which is replaced by a reflex removal of spasm of the muscles of the larynx, from which the child takes a breath and regains consciousness.

The convulsive affective-respiratory attacks, the causes of which we have considered, usually end in a deep sleep lasting 1-2 hours.

Do I need to see a doctor?

As a rule, these seizures do not have any serious consequences, but, nevertheless, if convulsive twitches occur at the moment when the child starts crying, it is worth seeking advice from an experienced neurologist, as for they may also be some diseases of the peripheral nervous system.

Rolling in, which is accompanied by convulsions, can be difficult to diagnose, as they are easily confused with epileptic seizures. And, by the way, in a small percentage of children, such a condition during ARP develops later into epileptic seizures.

Affective-respiratory convulsions and their difference from epileptic seizures

To know for sure that your child's seizures are not a sign of developing epilepsy, you should be aware of the differences between them.

  • ARP tends to become more frequent when the child is tired, and in epilepsy, an attack can develop in any condition.
  • Epileptic seizures are the same. And the affective-respiratory paroxysm proceeds differently, depending on the severity of the situations provoking it or the pain sensation.
  • ARP occurs in children no older than 5-6 years, while epilepsy is a non-ageing disease.
  • Sedative and nootropic drugs work well on ARP, and epileptic seizures cannot be stopped with sedative drugs.
  • In addition, when examining a child with ARP, the EEG results do not show the presence of epiactivity.

And yet we repeat: if twitches occur during an attack of breath holding, parents should show the baby to the doctor.

affective respiratory convulsions
affective respiratory convulsions

What is the difference between ARP in cardiovascular disease

As it turned out, the parents of 25% of children with ARP also had similar attacks. And yet, in modern medicine, it is believed that the main cause of this phenomenon is the presence of constant stressful situations in the family or overprotection of the child, which lead the baby to the described version of childhood hysteria.

Although it should be borne in mind that in a small proportion of patients, affective-respiratory paroxysm is one of the manifestations of concomitant cardiovascular pathology. True, at the same time, he also has distinctive features:

  • passes the attack with less arousal;
  • the cyanosis of the face with it is more pronounced;
  • the child is sweating;
  • complexion recovers more slowly after an attack.

However, such children do not have seizures, just during physical exertion or crying, they begin to sweat and turn pale, and in transport or a stuffy room, as a rule, they feel bad. They are also characterized by rapid fatigue and lethargy. In the presence of these signs, the child is best examined by a cardiologist.

What to do if your child has breath holding attacks

Due to the fact that the affective-respiratory syndrome is more of a neurotic manifestation, it is best to get rid of it by regulating the psychological state of the baby.

Parents first of all should pay attention to how they build their relationship with the child. Do they take care of him too much, afraid of any situations that can disturb the peace of their child? Or maybe there is no mutual understanding between adults in the family? Then it is best to consult a psychologist.

In addition, the orderliness and rationality of their regimen is of great importance for such children. According to E. O. Komarovsky, considering affective-respiratory attacks, they are always easier to prevent than to treat.

affective respiratory attacks Komarovsky
affective respiratory attacks Komarovsky

A few tips to prevent new bouts of rolling

  1. Parents should catch the state of the child. After all, everyone knows that a child is more likely to cry if he is hungry or tired, as well as in a situation where he cannot cope with any task. Try to mitigate or bypass all causes of breath holding and convulsions: for example, if the baby is irritated during a rush to get to a nursery or kindergarten, you better get up earlier to do it slowly and measuredly.
  2. Be aware of how children perceive prohibitions. Try to use the word "no" as little as possible. But this in no way means that from now on, everything is allowed for the crumbs! Just change the vector of its action. The kid will more willingly fulfill the offer: "Let's go there!", Than the requirement to stop immediately.
  3. Explain to your child what is happening to him. Say, "I know you're angry because you didn't get this toy." And immediately let's make it clear that, despite his frustration, there are limits to the manifestation of feelings: "You are upset, but you should not yell in the store."
  4. Explain the consequences of doing this: "If you don't know how to stop yourself, we'll have to send you to your room."

Clear boundaries of what is permitted, as well as a calm environment in the family, will help the baby quickly cope with the feeling of panic and confusion that caused rolling up.

Drug treatment for ARP

If your child has frequent and severe breath holding attacks, then they can be stopped with the help of medication, but this is done only as directed by a doctor.

Like other diseases of the human nervous system, ARP is treated with the use of neuroprotectors, sedatives, and B vitamins. Preference is usually given to Pantogam, Pantocalcin, Glycine, Phenibut”, as well as glutamic acid. The course of treatment lasts approximately 2 months.

Sedative drugs for children are best replaced with infusions of sedative herbs or ready-made extracts of motherwort, peony roots, etc. By the way, doses are calculated depending on the age of the baby (one drop per year of life). For example, if a child is 4 years old, then he should take 4 drops of medicine three times a day (the course is from two weeks to a month). Baths with coniferous extract and sea s alt also give a good effect.

affective respiratory attacks causes
affective respiratory attacks causes

If the seizures are difficult to stop in a child, and they are accompanied by convulsions, the causes of which we considered above, then the tranquilizers Atarax, Teraligen and Grandaxin are used in the treatment process.

A final word

Remember that any therapy in the case of affective respiratory syndrome can only be prescribed by a neurologist who will individually select the dose of the drug. Self-medication, as you probably understand, can be dangerous for your baby's he alth.

If you are faced with the problem of holding your breath in children, do not panic, because the child always comes out of this state on his own, without consequences, and gradually "outgrows" the described paroxysms.

Like all human diseases, ARP is easier to prevent than to treat, so once again I would like to remind you of the need for a flexible attitude of parents to the emotions of their child. Try to avoid situations that cause rolling, and at the moment when the child is already on edge, postpone educational activities until a quieter time.

Remember: the child is not able to cope with this kind of tantrum on his own, he cannot stop, and this, by the way, scares him very much. Help him break this vicious circle.

Talk to him instead of shouting, show maximum patience and love, distract, switch your attention to something pleasant, but do not give in to obvious attempts on the part of the baby to control you with the help of seizures. If you catch this line, then you most likely will not need medical treatment! Good luck and he alth!

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