• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
• /
• v.11 no.2
• /
• pp.84-88
• /
• 2004

Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome is diagnosed through history, physical examination, imaging studies and polysomnography. Clinical examination of this condition may point to hypertrophic tonsils and crowded oropharynx. The objective of this study is to investigate the usefulness of modified Mallampati grade (MMG) and tonsil grade (TG) in predicting the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. Methods: MMG and TG were divided into 4 and 5 groups, respectively, according to their severity. Medical records were collected from 94 patients who had received polysomnography and otorhinolaryngologic examination for snoring and sleep apnea at Keimyung University Dongsan Medical Center from March 2002 through April 2004. Patients were divided into two groups according to the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI)：control (n=24), and patients with sleep apnea (n=70). Results: Patients with higher MMG and TG had higher AHI, and MMG and TG proved to have a statistically significant correlation with AHI (p<0.05) Conclusion: MMG and TG were reliable predictors of OSA and helpful parameters in deciding treatment method.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
• /
• v.41 no.3
• /
• pp.126-132
• /
• 2016

Purpose: The aims of this study were to analyze the association between inflammatory cytokine and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and to evaluate treatment outcome and changes of plasma inflammatory cytokine levels after oral appliance therapy. Methods: Twenty-seven subjects who visited Department of Oral Medicine in Seoul National University Dental Hospital were performed nocturnal polysomnography and analyzed plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin (IL)-$1{\beta}$, IL-6, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-${\alpha}$ levels. Each subject was evaluated with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). The subjects were classified into 12 OSA patients (apnea-hypopnea index [AHI] >5) and 15 control (AHI ${\leq}5$) groups. The OSA group was treated with mandibular advancement device (MAD) for 3 months and re-evaluated nocturnal polysomnography and plasma inflammatory cytokine levels. Results: Plasma TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-10, and IL-6 levels were significantly higher in OSA patients compared to controls. Total AHI showed significant positive correlations with plasma IL-6 and TNF-${\alpha}$ levels. Percentage time of $SpO_2$ <90 and lowest $SpO_2$ were significantly correlated with plasma TNF-${\alpha}$ level. ESS showed significant positive correlation with plasma IL-10 level. Total AHI, percentage time of $SpO_2$ <90, lowest $SpO_2$, and mean $SpO_2$ were significantly improved after the MAD therapy. Plasma TNF-${\alpha}$ level was significantly decreased after MAD therapy. Conclusions: We suggest that MAD therapy is an effective treatment modality for patients with OSA and can decrease plasma cytokine level.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.387-392
• /
• 2018

The aim of this study was to determine the statistical significance of heart rate variability(HRV) between sleep stages, Apnea-hypopnea index(AHI) and age in patients with obstructive sleep apnea(OSA). This study evaluated the main parameters of HRV over time domain and frequency domain in 40 patients with sleep apnea. The non-REM(sleep stage) was statistically validated by comparing the AHI degree of the three groups(mild, moderate, severe) of sleep apnea patients. The NN50(p=0.043), pNN50(p=0.044), VLF peak(p=0.022), LF/HF(p=0.028) were statistically significant in the R-R interval of patients with sleep apnea from the control group (p<0.05). The LF / HF (p = 0.045) and HF power (p = 0.0395) parameters between the non-RAM sleep (sleep 2 phase) and REM sleep in patients with sleep apnea were statistically significant in the control group(p<0.05). We may be able to provide a basis for understanding the correlation among AHI, sleep stage and age and heart rate variability in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.161-166
• /
• 2013

Purpose: This study was intended to perform a cephalometric comparison between the patients with and without obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The factors influencing the OSA in the lateral cephalogram were also investigated. Methods: Fifty patients who had visited the Sleep Disorder Clinic at the Ajou University Hospital and evaluated with the polysomnograph (PSG) and cephalogram, were included in the study. The patients had the apnea-hypopnea episode over 5 times per hour (apnea-hypopnea index $[AHI]{\geq}5$) were diagnosed as OSA after the overnight PSG. To evaluate the hard and soft tissue profiles, the cephalometric radiograms were taken at the maximal intercuspation. The correlation between the patient's age, height, weight, body mass index (BMI) and AHI was inspected in the OSA and control group. The difference between the OSA and control group was evaluated (Mann-Whitney U Test). The cephalometric influencing factors to OSA were analyzed (Pearson's correlation coefficient) statistically using SPSS statistics. Results: The OSA Group had a significantly higher BMI than the control group. The mean lower facial height (ANS-Me) was longer in the OSA group; however, statistically significant difference was not detected in the anteroposterior craniofacial measurements. The distance between mandibular plane and hyoid bone of the OSA group was significantly longer than that of the control group. The hyoid position (MP-Hyoid) had a positive correlation between AHI (P<0.001). However, the measurements of oropharyngeal airway were not different between the two groups. The hypothesis, that the antero-posteriorly narrow oropharyngeal airway may aggravate the airway resistance and give rise to a higher AHI, was rejected in the study. Conclusion: We suggest that the lateral cephalogram may be utilized as a useful method to evaluate OSA. The patients with a lower hyoid position can be expected to have higher risks of OSA. However, a comprehensive intraoral inspection, including the soft palate and tonsilar hypertrophy, is emphasized, as the lateral cepahlogram cannot visualize the oropharyngeal status completely.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.82-86
• /
• 2011

Objectives: The Berlin Questionnaire (BQ) has been used to help identify patients at high risk of having sleep apnea in primary care. But it has not been validated in a sleep clinic for Korean patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of the BQ as a screening tool for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) for Korean patients in a sleep clinic. Methods: The BQ was prospectively applied to 121 subjects with OSA suspicion who visited to our sleep clinic. All subjects performed overnight polysomnography. OSA was defined as an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ${\geq}5$. We investigated the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of the BQ according to severity by AHI. Results: In 121 subjects, 73.6% were males, with a mean age of $48.8{\pm}13.0$ years. Twenty-five (20.6%) patients did not have OSA (AHI<5), 30 (25%) patients had mild OSA ($AHI{\geq}5$ and <15), 26 (21.4%) had moderate ($AHI{\geq}15$ and <30), and 40 (33%) had severe OSA ($AHI{\geq}30$). The BQ identified 69.4% of the patients as being at high risk for having OSA. The sensitivity and specificity of the BQ were 71.9% and 40%, for $AHI{\geq}5$, 75.8% and 38.2% for $AHI{\geq}15$, 77.5% and 34.6% for $AHI{\geq}30$, respectively. The positive and negative predictive values of the BQ were 82.1% and 27.0% for $AHI{\geq}5$, respectively. Positive and negative likelihood ratios were 1.2 and 0.7, and the overall diagnostic accuracy of the BQ was 65.3%, using an AHI cut-off of 5. Conclusion: Due to modest sensitivity and low specificity, the BQ does not seem to be an appropriate tool for identifying patients with obstructive sleep apnea in a sleep clinic population.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.86-96
• /
• 2017

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze causality among sleep apnea, depression and cognitive function in patients with obstructive sleep apnea. Methods: We reviewed the medical records of 105 patients with sleep apnea and snoring who underwent overnight polysomnography (PSG). We analyzed various biological data, sleep variables (sleep duration and percentage) and respiratory variables [arousal index (AI), periodic leg movement index (PLM index), snoring Index (SI), mean SpO2, minimum SpO2, apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), and respiratory disturbance index (RDI)]. We also analyzed various data by sleep, cognition, and mood related scales: Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS), snoring index by scale (SIS), Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Korean (Moca-K), Mini-mental State Examination-Korean (MMSE-K), clinical dementia rating (CDR), and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). We analyzed causation among sleep, and respiratory, mood, and cognition related scales in obstructive sleep apnea patients. We analyzed the mediating effects of depression on sleep apnea patient cognition. Results: As Duration N1 increased and Total sleep time (TST) decreased, MOCA-K showed negative causality (p < 0.01). As BDI and supine RDI increased, causality was negatively related to MOCA-K (p < 0.01). As PSQI (p < 0.001) and SIS (p < 0.01) increased and as MMSE-K (p < 0.01) decreased, causality was positively related to BDI. BDI was found to mediate the effect of age on MOCA-K in patients with obstructive sleep apnea. Conclusion: Duration N1, total sleep time, BDI, and supine RDI were associated with cognitive function in obstructive sleep apnea patients. Depression measured by BDI partially mediated cognitive decline in obstructive sleep apnea patients.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• /
• v.34 no.6
• /
• pp.426-431
• /
• 2012

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of temporary mandibular advancement devices (MAD) in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients Methods: 28 patients (male 21, female 7) undergoing temporary mandibular advancement device treatment for OSA were selected from 2011.01. to 2012.02. in the department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at SamsungMedicalCenter. Treatment efficacy was determined by polysomnography (PSG) at baseline & after MAD delivery. The response group was defined as >50% Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI) reduction plus post-MAD AHI <10, and the non-response group was defined as <50% AHI reduction. The lateral cephalogram was analysed including SNA, SNB, UL, MPH, PAS, PASU, and PAST using V-ceph$^{TM}$ (Cybermed, USA). Results: The responsers were 23 patients, and non-responsers were 5 patients. The AHI was significantly reduced with temporary MAD ($8.08{\pm}7.93$) compared with baseline ($28.51{\pm}20.56$) in the response group (n=23). No significant difference was observed between pre MAD and post MAD except SNB on cephalometric analysis. Among 11 patients successfully treated with the temporary device, 9 patients said that using permanent device brings better effect too. Conclusion: These results indicate that the Temporary MAD could not be the only effective tools on OSA but also be used to predict patient's reactivity about permanent appliance treatment. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the relations between temporary MAD and permanent MAD.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
• /
• v.16 no.2
• /
• pp.69-75
• /
• 2009

Objectives : The detrended fluctuation analysis is one of the nonlinear methods for the investigation of biological time series. It quantifies the fractal scaling properties and is known to be useful in the evaluation of long-range correlations in time series. The heart rate variability(HRV) of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) patients during nighttime was analyzed by detrended fluctuation analysis to assess its relationship with the severity of the symptoms. Methods : Fifty nine untreated male OSAS patients with moderate to severe symptoms(mean age=45.4${\pm}$11.7 years, apnea-hypopnea index, AHI${\geq}$15) underwent nocturnal polysomnography. Moderate(AHI=15-30, N=22) and severe(AHI>30, N=37) OSAS patients were compared for the indices derived from detrended fluctuation analysis and frequency domain analysis of HRV. Results : In the detrended fluctuation analysis, the alpha values were 0.75${\pm}$0.11 and 0.82${\pm}$0.07 for the severe and the moderate OSAS groups respectively. The difference was significant(p<.01). The alpha value had negative correlation with AHI(r=-.425, p=.001). Negative correlation coefficients were also found in the relationships between the alpha values and very low frequency(VLF)(r=-.425, p=.001), low frequency(LF)(r=-.633, p= <.001) and the LF/HF ratio(r=-.305, p=.019) respectively. LF/HF ratio(p=.005) was higher in the severe OSAS group compared to that of the moderate OSAS group. Conclusion : In this study, the detrended fluctuation analysis showed the significant difference between the two OSAS groups classified according to their severity of symptoms. The scaling exponent showed the negative correlation with AHI and indicies of frequency domain analysis. This result suggests that detrended fluctuation analysis can be helpful to estimate the severity of OSAS.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
• /
• v.47 no.3
• /
• pp.135-143
• /
• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate polysomnographic and cephalometric characteristics of patients with OSA according to obesity level based on the World Health Organization (WHO) Asian-Pacific BMI criteria. Methods: One hundred and thirty-one consecutive patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were evaluated using standard level 1 polysomnography and cephalometric analyses. The subjects were categorized into normal, overweight and obese groups according to the WHO Asian-Pacific BMI criteria. Respiratory indices and cephalometric parameters were compared among groups. Results: The 131 patients consisted of 111 males and 20 females, with a mean age of 44.1±12.4 years. The mean value of BMI was 25.3±3.4 kg/m² for all subjects, 20.6±2.2 kg/m² for normal (n=27), 24.0±0.5 kg/m² for overweight (n=33) and 27.6±2.2 kg/m² for obese (n=71). The obese group had a significantly higher apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and respiratory arousal index and lower oxygen saturation level than the normal group (p<0.05). Total AHI, mean oxygen saturation level and respiratory arousal index were significantly correlated with BMI (p<0.001). A longer soft palate and anterior position of the hyoid bone were significantly correlated with BMI level (p ≤0.05). Conclusions: Obese patients have a higher risk of compromised craniofacial skeletal features and soft tissue structures, and severe OSA than non-obese patients.

• Journal of Sleep Medicine
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.55-61
• /
• 2018

Objectives: Despite the accumulating evidence of the effectiveness of positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome, adherence to PAP therapy is not high. Several factors reportedly affect PAP adherence; however, it remains unclear whether patients' symptoms were detrimental to adherence rate. This study is aimed at investigating the relationship between insomnia symptoms and adherence. Methods: Retrospective analyses were performed in 359 patients with OSA (mean age $58.4{\pm}13.2$ years; females, n=80). Logistic regression analyses were performed between PAP adherence with clinical factors and questionnaires, such as Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Insomnia Severity Index, and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Results: PAP adherence was defined as the use of PAP for ${\geq}4h$ per night on 70% of nights during 30 consecutive days. The median follow-up time was 55 days (interquartile range, 30-119 days), and 54.3% showed poor adherence. Non-adherent patients showed more severe sleep onset insomnia, higher BDI, and higher nadir oxygen saturation ($SaO_2$). Patients with good adherence had higher apnea-hypopnea index, oxygen desaturation index, and respiratory arousal to total arousal ratio. Sleep onset insomnia [odds ratio (OR)=1.792, p=0.012], BDI (OR = 1.055, p=0.026), and nadir $SaO_2$ (OR=1.043, p=0.040) were independently associated with PAP non-adherence. Conclusions: Not the severity of insomnia but sleep onset insomnia was associated with PAP adherence, as well as depressive mood. It suggests that different interventions for reducing insomnia and depressive mood are needed to increase PAP adherence in patients with OSA.