title: Nasal continuous positive airway pressure for nonapneic snoring?
abstract: The feasibility of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) for heavy snoring associated with daytime sleepiness was studied in 118 consecutive patients with an apnea hypopnea index below 5. Fifty-nine of them reported daytime sleepiness in a questionnaire and were offered treatment with nasal CPAP. Whereas 48 patients refused it, the remaining 11 (19%) accepted nasal CPAP for home therapy. Acceptors and refusers did not differ in sleep structure, but acceptors had slightly more sleep-disordered breathing events per hour of sleep than refusers. The pressure needed to abolish snoring in these 11 patients was 7.3 +/- 1.6 cm H2O. Six months after prescription, the built-in time counters of the patients' devices were read. By dividing the hours of operation by the days since initiation of treatment, we found a mean daily use time of only 2.8 +/- 1.5 h. Nevertheless, eight patients (73%) reported that their sleepiness had improved with therapy. We conclude that only a minority of nonapneic snorers accept treatment with nasal CPAP on a long-term basis and that this subgroup is not predictable from polysomnography.
authors: Pulmonary Department, Krankenhaus Lainz, Vienna, Austria.
authors: H
authors: H
authors: Rauscher
authors: D
authors: D
authors: Formanek
authors: H
authors: H
authors: Zwick
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D011175:Positive-Pressure Respiration; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012913:Snoring / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*