Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder that occurs when a person’s breathing is repeatedly interrupted during sleep. The most common type of sleep apnea is called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and it occurs when the muscles in the back of your throat can’t keep your airway open when you try to breathe. Current treatment options include lifestyle changes, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, and surgery.
A new treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has shown promising results in its first human trial conducted by researchers at Flinders University.
This drug is intended to prevent narrowing or collapse of the upper airway during sleep, which is the main cause of OSA. Because it can only be used in about half of OSA patients, it may serve as an alternative option for OSA patients who cannot tolerate continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy.
“Although more rigorous clinical evaluation and trials are needed, this is a great first step and should give hope to many people around the world who suffer from sleep apnea,” said senior author of the study. Professor Danny Eckhart, director of the FHMRI at the Flinders Sleep Institute, said: sleep health.
“OSA is one of the most common sleep-related breathing disorders, afflicted by an estimated 1 billion people and, if left untreated, has a significant impact on health and safety. CPAP machines are effective but tolerable. is still a major problem for many, and other treatments such as dental splints and upper airway surgery do not always work, which is why new treatment options for OSA are needed.
“At this time, there are no approved treatments for OSA.
It was published in the magazine chestThis study tested the drug versus placebo in 12 patients with OSA using either nasal drops, nasal spray, or direct application using an endoscope.
After monitoring sleep and airway activity over several sessions, the team found consistent and sustained results in patients’ airways remaining open during sleep compared to placebo treatment, regardless of the delivery method used. I found an improvement.
“Although it is a small study, our findings are the first detailed investigation of this new treatment in patients with OSA, and the results are encouraging,” said FHMRI, the study’s lead author. : Sleep Health’s Amal Osman, Ph.D.
“The drug we tested was designed to target specific receptors expressed on the surface of the upper airway, making it easier to engage surrounding muscles to keep the airway open during sleep. Although there is still a long way to go in terms of clinical trials and development, our research suggests that targeting these receptors may be a promising avenue for future treatments. is shown.
References: “Local potassium channel blockade improves pharyngeal collapse” Amal M. Othman, Stapa Mukherjee, Thomas J. Altry, Martina Delbeck, Doris Gering, Michael Hahn, Tina Lang, Charles Shinn , Thomas Muller, Gerrit Wyman, Danny J. Eckhart, 24 November 2022, chest.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chest.2022.11.024
This study was sponsored by Bayer, the manufacturer of the drug tested. Professor Eckhart is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council for an Australian Leadership Fellowship.
Potential Conflicts of Interest: DJE reports grants from Bayer, Apnimed, Invicta Medical, and Takeda Pharmaceuticals and serves as an advisor to Bayer, Invicta Medical, Mosanna, and Apnimed. TJA serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of Jazz Pharmaceuticals. MD, DG, MH, TL, CX, TM, and GW are employees (including stock options) of the study sponsor. AMO and SM have no potential conflicts to declare.
