Specialties Breathing Babies and children
Breathing in babies and children
A child who breathes through the mouth at rest, snores, sleeps poorly or has one ENT episode after another often has a disrupted breathing pattern. Daniel Bontems works on these situations at a functional level, alongside the care provided by the paediatrician and the ENT specialist, and refers the child to them when the examination warrants it.
Infants under 6 months
Before any manipulation of the skull, face or spine, regulations require a certificate from your doctor stating that there is no contraindication. Please remember to bring it.
What parents notice
In infants
Sucking difficulties, a persistently blocked nose, restless sleep, regurgitation, a preferred head position.
In young children
Mouth open at rest, snoring, unrefreshing sleep, recurrent ear infections or nasopharyngitis, noisy breathing.
At school age
Daytime tiredness, difficulty concentrating, slumped posture, current or planned orthodontic treatment. The work is carried out in liaison with the orthodontist, the paediatrician and, where relevant, the paediatric orthopaedic surgeon.
These signs do not constitute a diagnosis.They warrant a medical opinion, particularly when sleep is regularly disrupted. Osteopathic support is coordinated with this medical follow-up.
Regulatory framework, infants under 6 monthsBefore any manipulation of the skull, face or spine, a certificate from your doctor stating that there is no contraindication is mandatory (French Decree No. 2007-435, Article 3). Please remember to bring it to the consultation.
Babies, children and breathing
Another question? Write to the practice
My baby breathes through the mouth: is this a cause for concern?
Occasional mouth breathing, during a cold, is common. When it becomes the usual way of breathing at rest and during sleep, it warrants an opinion: an ENT examination can rule out a mechanical obstruction, and osteopathic support can address the associated functional aspects.
My child snores every night: what should I do?
Regular snoring in a child is not trivial and warrants a medical opinion, particularly to assess sleep quality. An ENT assessment is often the first step. Osteopathy then works on the functional components, as a complement.
From what age can a child be seen?
There is no minimum age: the practice sees infants from their first weeks of life.
Under 6 months, regulations require, before any manipulation of the skull, face or spine, a certificate from your doctor stating that there is no contraindication. Please remember to bring it.
Is the session painful for a baby?
Work with infants is gentle and gradual. The session takes place with the parents present, and the child stays dressed or in a bodysuit, depending on the reason for the visit.