Rochester, NY Has Specialized Pediatric Sleep Lab

... Dr. Heidi Connolly has been seeing children in Strong's adult sleep lab since beginning her training in pediatric sleep medicine seven years ago.

... Strong Health has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in a Pediatric Sleep Medicine lab in Brighton. Sleep specialists see children all over the country, but the number of labs dedicated solely to children is less common.

... When Connolly started, she typically would see 10 patients a month. Now, her practice sees 70 patients a week. She attributes the growth to more parents becoming aware that help is available ...

... Patients are seen from 3 weeks old up to young adults in their early 20s.

Many parents end up just getting counseling from the center on how to get their child to sleep, such as setting a rigid bedtime routine, not allowing exposure to television or light before bedtime, and making them get up at the same time every morning.

... Jodi Mindell, associate director of the sleep center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said pediatric sleep specialists are still a rarity. Only about 250 to 300 such specialists belong to the American Society of Sleep Medicine. But the field is growing.

... "But even the American Academy of Pediatrics says every family should be asked if a child snores. The research has just taken off."

... A parent or guardian must stay with the child during the study, unless the child is an independent, older teenager. The adult sleep lab provided cots for the parents, but this lab has tandem permanent beds for child and parent that are hidden in built-in furniture in the walls. ...