[Continuous nasal positive pressure respiration (nCPAP) as a therapeutic possibility in the sleep apnea syndrome].

Sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) is a rare disorder which is being diagnosed more often with increasing knowledge among physicians and patients. SAS presents with daytime hypersomnolence, intellectual deterioration and personality changes, chiefly in obese men, and is caused by intermittent upper airway obstruction during sleep at the level of the mesopharynx. Consecutive repetitive apneas of more than 10 seconds' duration are immediately abolished by pneumatic splinting with continuous positive pressure of 5 to 15 cm H2O with a nasal mask (nCPAP). A case report on a 31-year-old man with obesity and hypercapnia demonstrates that, although nCPAP by itself does not lead to weight reduction, it is more acceptable than surgical therapy (tracheostomy or uvulopalatopharyngoplasty).