Why Your Child Briefly Stops Breathing: Breath-Holding Spells
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What are Breath-Holding Spells (BHS)?
Breath-Holding Spells are episodes where young children hold their breath, causing them to turn blue and sometimes lose consciousness briefly. BHS is harmless, but it is very frightening for both parents and the child to experience. An episode is short; lasting from seconds to more than a minute and is triggered by intense emotions of the child, such as a tantrum, crying, frustration, or pain.
Situation: A toddler, still a bit unsteady on their feet, falls at home. The mother hears a thud, but there is no crying, so she rushes over. She finds her child lying motionless on the ground with eyes rolled back and pale lips. As she lifts him, he suddenly stiffens, clenches his jaws, and fists. Then he exhibits some twitching, and after what seems like an eternity, he becomes limp and opens his eyes shortly after. He immediately recognizes his mother, cries a little, and then falls asleep, with a noticeable pale facial complexion.
Who is affected?
Breath-holding spells can occur from birth. Most episodes occur in children aged 1-2 years. From the age of three, the symptoms occur less frequently. In 90% of children with breath-holding spells, the episodes have disappeared by the age of six. It appears to occur more often in temperamental children and is hereditary. It affects 5% of children.
Characteristics
Usually, a child first cries very hard and suddenly stops breathing during a gasp. The child may then turn red and then blue, lose consciousness, and become limp or stiff. Additionally, you may encounter the following characteristics:
– arms and legs may twitch
– eyes may roll back
– may urinate
– no contact is possible during the episode
– they may experience pain after regaining consciousness
What can you do as a parent?
- During an episode, it is important to stay calm and speak softly to your child. You may feel the urge to shake your baby or child if they are unresponsive, but do not do this. It can only worsen the episode.
- Also, ensure that your child cannot hurt themselves and lay them on their side.
- Try to talk to your child about it afterward, but do not make it a big deal. If anger or frustration were the triggers, you can try to teach them to express these feelings differently.
- Do not avoid conflicts in the hope that there will be no more episodes. When your child realizes that the episodes yield something, they may provoke and use them to get attention or their way. Try to prevent a tantrum with humor, understanding, or distraction.
- Have your child's iron levels checked..Many children who suffer from breath-holding spells are found to have an iron deficiency. The episodes can decrease by supplementing this deficiency.
Breath-Holding Spells are harmless, but it must be ruled out that the symptoms do not originate from something else (serious) such as a heart defect or epilepsy. If it is the first time and a doctor has not previously diagnosed it as BHS, it should be examined as soon as possible.
Call 112 if the child:
- is unconscious (does not seem to regain consciousness)
– is blue or gray
– is twitching with their body
Diagnosis and treatment
During a visit to the doctor, it helps to know what preceded the BHS. Did the child cry, turn red, and then blue or white? Did this happen before or after the loss of consciousness? Eye rolling or twitching of arms/legs is also important information for the doctor. The diagnosis of BHS is sometimes confused with epilepsy. To rule this out, an EEG can be performed, and if nothing is seen on the scan, epilepsy can be excluded.
BHS does not require treatment. The most important thing during an episode is for you as a parent to remain calm and not give it too much attention. This condition is harmless, and children continue to develop normally.
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