Ventilatory suppression in children following opioid administration is of obvious concern, especially following routine surgical procedures (i.e. adenotonsillectomy). It is thought that patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have increased sensitivity to opioids, and especially in opioid naïve patients. Recent evidence in adults suggests that patients with moderate to severe OSA may not predispose patients to increased opioid sensitivity in the form of respiratory depression when compared with patients that do not have OSA. It is well known that OSA in children is significantly different from OSA in adults (e.g. gender predilection, central vs. peripheral causation). The manifestation and etiologies are very different in pediatric OSA making it a vastly different disease process.
