OSA Physiology

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a sleep disorder which has been gradually accepted as an important cause of increased morbidity and mortality. The treatment of moderate-severe OSA has improved dramatically since the introduction of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) devices; however, the adherence of patients to CPAP treatment is relatively low. Adherence appears to be even worse in patients with mild or asymptomatic OSA. The failure to identify and treat mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic OSA patients may be costly, as such patients comprise about 20% of the general adult population...

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that respiratory event duration exhibits an endogenous circadian rhythm. DESIGN: Within-subject and between-subjects. SETTINGS: Inpatient intensive physiologic monitoring unit at the Brigham and Women's Hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Seven subjects with moderate/severe sleep apnea and four controls, age 48 (SD = 12) years, 7 males. INTERVENTIONS: Subjects completed a 5-day inpatient protocol in dim light...

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) resolves in lateral sleep in 20% of patients. However, the effect of lateral positioning on factors contributing to OSA has not been studied. We aimed to measure the effect of lateral positioning on the key pathophysiological contributors to OSA including lung volume, passive airway anatomy/collapsibility, the ability of the airway to stiffen and dilate, ventilatory control instability (loop gain), and arousal threshold. DESIGN: Non-randomized single arm observational study...