Swallowing and pharyngo-esophageal manometry in obstructive sleep apnea.

Introduction: Upper airway nerve and muscle damage associated with obstructive sleep apnea may impair the strength and dynamics of pharyngeal and esophageal contractions during swallowing.

Objective: To evaluate the presence of alterations in pharyngoesophageal manometry in patients with obstructive sleep apnea with and without oropharyngeal dysphagia.

Methods: This study prospectively evaluated 22 patients with obstructive sleep apnea without spontaneous complaints of dysphagia, using a questionnaire, fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing, and pharyngoesophageal manometry, including measurement of the upper and lower esophageal sphincter pressures and mean pharyngeal pressures at three levels during swallowing.

Results: The dysphagia group consisted of 17 patients (77.3%) in whom swallowing abnormalities were detected on fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (n=15; 68.2%) and/or in the questionnaire (n=7; 31.8%). The five remaining cases comprised a control group without oropharyngeal dysphagia. In all cases of abnormalities on fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing, there was premature bolus leakage into the pharynx. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups regarding any of the pharyngoesophageal manometry measurements, age, or severity of obstructive sleep apnea.

Conclusion: Pharyngoesophageal manometry detected no statistically significant difference between the groups with and without oropharyngeal dysphagia.