STUDY OBJECTIVE The upper and lower airways are continuous. While upper airway symptoms are common in COPD patients, with accumulating evidence to suggest increased nasal inflammation, the relationships among upper airway, lower airway, and systemic inflammatory indexes have not been studied. We aimed to confirm that there is heightened nasal inflammation in COPD patients, to test the hypothesi...

Obstructive sleep apnea is the result of repeated episodes of upper airway obstruction during sleep. Recent evidence indicates that alterations in upper airway anatomy and disturbances in neuromuscular control both play a role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea. We hypothesized that subjects without sleep apnea are more capable of mounting vigorous neuromuscular responses to upper a...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of selective electrical stimulation of the tensor veli palatini muscle on upper airway patency. METHODS Pressure-flow relationships were evaluated, in a feline isolated upper airway preparation, to determine the role of the soft palate musculature on airflow dynamics. The tensor veli palatini muscles were selectively stimulated while monitoring upper airway co...

Most patients with sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS) are middle-aged men. As there are conflicting data on the effects of age and gender on upper airway calibre, we tested the hypothesis that increasing age and the male sex predispose to upper airway narrowing in normal subjects. We measured upper airway calibre using acoustic reflection in 60 men and 54 women (median 35, range 16-74 yrs) ...

Heated humidification of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) reduces upper airway symptoms and improves initial use in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS). The present study aimed to assess the effect of heated humidification of nCPAP on upper airway symptoms and initial use in obstructive sleep apnoea. This study was of a randomised, crossover design. Subjects with polysomno...

The upper airway is the primary conduit for passage of air into the lungs. Its physiology has been the subject of intensive study: both passive mechanical and active neural influences contribute to its patency and collapsibility. Different models can be used to explain behavior of the upper airway, including the "balance of forces" (airway suction pressure during inspiration versus upper airway...

Sleep is a phase during which the respiratory system undergoes major changes. These changes lead to greater vulnerability and a greater risk of abnormalities, even in normal individuals. In the transition from wakefulness to sleep, there is commonly an increase in upper airway resistance and impairment of various protective responses and reflexes, which are efficient in promoting and maintainin...

background and objective: numerous anatomical abnormalities or pathological conditions can cause upper airway obstruction in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (osas). muller’s maneuver (mm) is one of diagnostic modalities investigating the obstruction site in patients with osas. this study aimed to investigate the obstruction sites of patients with osas based on mm. materials and methods: this w...