The AAP has formally changed the name of ALTE to Brief Unexplained Event (BRUE). The definition has also been formalized with more specific criteria and suggestions to empower the clinician to base the diagnosis on their suspicion rather than relying only on the caregiver’s history.
BRUE is an event occurring in an infant <1 year of age when an observer reports a sudden, brief (<1 min), and now resolved episode of ≥1 of the following without explanation:
- Cyanosis or pallor
- Absent, decreased, or irregular breathing
- Marked change in tone (hyper- or hypotonia)
- Altered level of responsiveness
- Must have returned to baseline