Is disrupted sleep an airway problem?
A child who isn't breathing well at night can present, by day, as tired, irritable, or unfocused. This short checklist won't tell you what's wrong — it tells you whether the pattern is worth an airway evaluation.
Run the checklist
Check the signs you've noticed over the last few months. Nothing is stored or sent — the result is yours to bring to a consultation.
Check every sign you've noticed
Think about your child or teen over the last few months. Select everything that applies — there are no right answers, only a clearer picture to bring to an evaluation.
This is a screening tool, not a diagnosis. It cannot tell you whether your child has a sleep or airway condition — only whether a clinical evaluation is worth scheduling.
A screening points you toward an evaluation — not an answer.
The signs in this checklist overlap with plenty of ordinary causes. What they can't do is confirm a condition. Only a clinical evaluation does that.
The value of the checklist is direction. Several of these signs traveling together is the kind of pattern worth looking at directly rather than watching — but the checklist itself is not a diagnosis, and a low count doesn't rule anything out.
At NRH Orthodontics, that evaluation means a low-radiation CBCT airway scan and the AAO airway questionnaire, read by Dr. Fallah as part of a standard intake. When the imaging points to something outside orthodontics — enlarged tonsils or adenoids, nasal obstruction, true sleep apnea — she refers to a pediatric ENT. The point of screening is to catch it and route it correctly.
Read the full protocol on the airway evaluation page, or see how early care works for children & teens.
09 — Intake
Begin with an evaluation.
Your first visit at NRH Orthodontics is a full evaluation — CBCT airway screening included — and a treatment plan you understand before you commit to anything.
Accepting new patients — North Richland Hills, TX