The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in Americans is 9% and increasing. Increased afferent vagal activation may predispose to OSA by reducing upper airway muscle activation/patency and disrupting respiratory rhythmogenesis. Vagal afferent neurons are inhibited by cannabinoid type 1 (CB1) or cannabinoid type 2 (CB2) receptors in animal models of vagally-mediated behaviors. Injections ...

The timing and magnitude of airway narrowing in central apneas is unknown. We have developed a method of apnea classification that relies on the transmission of cardiac airflow oscillation to indicate airway patency. Using a theoretical model, we showed that the amplitude of the cardiac airflow oscillation is proportional to airway diameter for small lumens. While in the majority of central apn...

STUDY OBJECTIVE To evaluate the tolerability and to find predictors of treatment success for an individually adjusted, one-piece mandibular advancement device in patients with snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. DESIGN Prospective study. SETTING Departments of Respiratory Medicine and Orthodontics, Umeå University. PATIENTS Six hundred nineteen of 630 patients (98%), who consecutively re...

BACKGROUND Berlin Questionnaire (BQ), an English language screening tool for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in primary care, has been applied in tertiary settings, with variable results. AIMS Development of BQ Portuguese version and evaluation of its utility in a sleep disordered breathing clinic (SDBC). MATERIAL AND METHODS BQ was translated using back translation methodology and prospectiv...

IMPORTANCE This study presents an innovative method for developing a neuromuscular model of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). OBJECTIVE To establish a new OSA animal model simulating real upper airway conditions during sleep. DESIGN AND SETTING In vivo animal study at an academic tertiary referral center. SUBJECTS A total of 27 New Zealand white male rabbits were used. INTERVENTION Sleep w...

The nadir of SaO2 during an obstructive apnea is dependent upon the apnea's duration and the rate of fall of saturation (dSaO2/dt). We postulated that a low Q, such as in patients with congestive heart failure with sleep apnea, or a reduction in Q, as seen in some humans during obstructive sleep apnea, might steepen dSaO2/dt. The mechanism postulated was lowering of SvO2 with increased pulmonar...