AUTONOMIC FUNCTION IN NORMAL AND

Funded Activity Summary

Previous research has shown that SIDS victims have a number of subtle abnormalities that set them apart from the normal population. These include the occurrence of upper airway obstruction in sleep, a reduced ability to awaken from sleep and abnormalities of the automatic control of heart rate and blood pressure in sleep. These body functions are controlled by a component of the brain called the autonomic nervous system which controls the heart and other internal functions by means of nerves called the parasymmpathetic and sympathetic systems. The purpose of this project is to undertake studies of the autonomic system in normal infants and in those infants who are considered to be at risk for SIDS. As SIDS occurs almost exclusively in sleep it is important to study the infant?s heart rate and blood pressure responses to various challenges whilst asleep. All infants (both controls and subjects) enrolled in the protocol will therefore undergo overnight sleep studies during which their automatic responses to a variety of stimuli will be measured. Once we have established the normal response to these stimuli we can then compare them to the results of the at risk group. If, as we anticipate, there is a difference between our at risk group and the normal controls in automatic function then we will measure some of the stress hormones in the body which reflect the function of the autonomic nervous system. If there is a difference in the levels of these hormones between the normal and the at risk groups which correlates with the expected subtle abnormalities in function we may be able to devise an accessible and quantifiable measure for those infants at risk of SIDS

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2000

End Date: 01-01-2002

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $292,916.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Paediatrics

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

There are no SEO codes available for this funding activity

Other Keywords

Apparent life threatening events (ALTE) | Arousal: responses and mechanisms | Autonomic nervous system: function and development | Cardiovascular reflexes in the infant | Infant morbidity | Infantile obstructive apnea | Reversal of obstructive apnea in infants using nasal CPAP | Sleep breathing disorders in the human infant | Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)

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