Heavy breathing in children can be caused by physiological phenomena, medical conditions (e.g. respiratory tract infections, rhinitis-sinusitis or adenoid hypertrophy), and needs to be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.
1. Physiological phenomenon: for younger infants, due to the imperfect development of the upper respiratory tract, such as the narrow nasal passage, the nasal cavity is relatively short, the nasal mucosa is tender and rich in blood vessels, easily affected by the external environment and other factors, such as indoor ambient temperature at night is low, heavy breathing can occur.
2. Pathologic conditions.
(1) Respiratory tract infections: such as acute upper respiratory tract infections, acute bronchitis, etc., which can be manifested by fever and nasal congestion, and when there is a rise in body temperature and abnormal nasal secretion at night, the manifestation of heavy breathing can occur.
(2) Rhinitis – sinusitis: it is a more common disease in pediatrics, often with symptoms such as nasal congestion that lasts for a longer period of time. Due to poor ventilation of the nasal cavity, open-mouth breathing, or coarse air, and snoring during sleep can occur at night.
(3) Adenoid hypertrophy: Nasal obstruction is the main symptom of this disease, and children often have open-mouth breathing, coarse and audible breathing and snoring at night, and some of them may have “adenoid face”.
It is recommended to consult a specialist for evaluation and judgment if necessary.