Negative Expiratory Pressure Technique: An Awake Test to Measure Upper Airway Collapsibility in Adolescents

摘要

Study Objectives:Upper airway (UA) collapsibility is a major pathophysiologic feature of the obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). In adolescents, it is measured by obtaining the slope of pressure-flow relationship (SPF) while applying negative nasal pressure during sleep. An easier technique to assess UA collapsibility, consisting of application of negative expiratory pressure (NEP) during wakefulness, has demonstrated differences between control and OSAS subjects. We hypothesized that the NEP technique would correlate with SPF as a measurement of UA collapsibility in adolescents.