Upper airway obstruction and the Robin sequence

Abstract

Both the etiology of Robin sequence and the mechanisms of upper airway obstruction are heterogeneous. As a result, generalizations about the care of newborns with the combination of micrognathia, cleft palate, and airway obstruction cannot be made. Management of the airway obstruction should be based on the results of direct endoscopic observation of the site of obstruction and not on the presumptive diagnosis of glossoptosis. It should not be assumed that "catch-up growth" of the mandible will occur and lead to spontaneous resolution of either the airway obstruction or the micrognathia. The presentation of the child with Pierre Robin sequence should not be the end of the diagnostic search, but rather the beginning.