Anatomic measures of upper airway structures in obstructive sleep apnea

Jose E Barrera; Candace Y Pau; Veronique-Isabelle Forest; Andrew B Holbrook; Gerald R Popelka

doi:10.1016/j.wjorl.2017.05.002

Anatomic measures of upper airway structures in obstructive sleep apnea

World J Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Jun 21;3(2):85-91. doi: 10.1016/j.wjorl.2017.05.002. eCollection 2017 Jun.

Authors

Jose E Barrera¹, Candace Y Pau¹, Veronique-Isabelle Forest¹, Andrew B Holbrook¹, Gerald R Popelka¹

Affiliation

¹ Division of Sleep Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology, Stanford University, USA.

Abstract

Objective: Determine if anatomic dimensions of airway structures are associated with airway obstruction in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients.

Methods: Twenty-eight subjects with (n = 14) and without (n = 14) OSA as determined by clinical symptoms and sleep studies; volunteer sample. Skeletal and soft tissue dimensions were measured from radiocephalometry and magnetic resonance imaging. The soft palate thickness, mandibular plane-hyoid (MP-H) distance, posterior airway space (PAS) diameters and area, and tongue volume were calculated.

Results: Compared to controls, the OSA group demonstrated a significantly longer MP-H distance (P = 0.009) and shorter nasal PAS diameter (P = 0.02). The PAS area was smaller (P = 0.002) and tongue volume larger in the OSA group (P = 0.004). The MP-H distance, PAS measurements, and tongue volume are of clinical relevance in OSA patients.

Conclusions: A long MP-H distance, and small PAS diameters and area are significant anatomic measures in OSA; however the most substantial parameter found was a large tongue volume.

Keywords: Anatomic measurement; Anatomy; Hyoid position; Obstructive sleep apnea; Posterior airway space; Tongue volume.