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Site of upper airway obstruction in patients with idiopathic obstructive sleep apnea
Author(s) -
Chaban Roman,
Cole Philip,
Hoffstein Victor
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
the laryngoscope
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.181
H-Index - 148
eISSN - 1531-4995
pISSN - 0023-852X
DOI - 10.1288/00005537-198806000-00013
Subject(s) - airway , medicine , airway obstruction , obstructive sleep apnea , soft palate , sleep apnea , anesthesia , catheter , apnea , tongue , pharynx , surgery , pathology
We developed a technique to determine the site of upper airway obstruction in patients with idiopathic obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This technique is based on the analysis of inspiratory airflow pressures at various levels of the pharyngeal airway during sleep. Pharyngeal pressure was measured by a moveable Millar catheter pressure transducer. The catheter's position in the airway was localized radiographically. Ten patients with OSA were tested: five patients were found to have upper airway obstruction at the level of the soft palate, and five had upper airway obstruction at the base of the tongue. We concluded that measuring airway pressures at multiple sites along the airway is useful in localizing the site of obstruction in patients with OSA, and may have important implications in terms of the patient's response to surgical treatment.