Upper airway effective compliance during wakefulness and sleep in obese adolescents studied via two-dimensional dynamic MRI and semiautomated image segmentation.

Novel biomarkers of upper airway biomechanics may improve diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Upper airway effective compliance (EC), the slope of cross-sectional area versus pressure estimated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), correlates with apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and critical closing pressure (P). The study objectives are to develop a fast, simplified method for estimating EC using dynamic MRI and physiological measurements and to explore the hypothesis that OSAS severity correlates with mechanical compliance during wakefulness and sleep.

Effect of sleep on upper airway dynamics in obese adolescents with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.

Study Objectives: The biomechanical basis of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) may influence upper airway dynamics. In this study, we investigate dynamic changes during respiration in wakefulness and sleep in obese adolescents with and without OSAS.

Methods: Respiratory-gated dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at the retropalatal and retroglossal regions was performed with simultaneous measurement of SpO2 and nasal-oral mask airflow and pressure.