Periosteal kneading plus resistance exercise for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome

Abstract

Objective To observe the effect and mechanism of periosteal pressure kneading plus resistance exercise in improving obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS).Methods Thirty-two patients with moderate OSAHS were divided randomly into a kneading plus resistance training group and a conventional drug group,each group with 16 patients.The training group was given periosteal pressure kneading plus resistance exercise while the drug group received only conventional oral treatment with drugs.Before and after treatment,polysomnography (PSG),Thera-Band elastic bands and a PWS angle measuring instrument were used to observe PSG parameters around the neck plus the muscle strength and cervical activity of both groups.Results In the training group the following components of the PSG index had improved significantly compared with before treatment:respiratory events (AHI),sleep structure (SS),awakening number (AN),non-rapid eye movement (NREM),rapid eye movement (REM),mean oxyhemoglobin saturation (MSaO2) events,lowest oxyhemoglobin saturation (LSaO2),and the index of oxyhemoglobin saturation decrease (ODI).In the drug group only the LSaO2 and ODI had improved significantly compared with before treatment.In terms of the PSG parameters,the training group demonstrated significantly greater improvement than the drug group.After treatment,the training group's average residence time in neck load pulling was extended significantly while that of the drug group showed no significant change.The difference between the groups was statistically significant.After the treatment the training group's average activity of the cervical spine was also significantly increased,and again the drug group showed no significant improvement.Conclusion Skeletal lesions in peripheral airways may be an important factor in the formation of OSAHS.Periosteum kneading with resistance exercise has an obvious curative effect on OSAHS. Key words: Obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome; Periosteal pressure; Resistance exercise; Massage