Yelkur Pallavi, Manivel Rajajeyakumar, Chandrasekhar Varshini, Mohammed Syed, Narayan Kishore
Pediatrics, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai, IND.
Physiology, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, Chennai, IND.
Cureus. 2024 Jul 13;16(7):e64483. doi: 10.7759/cureus.64483. eCollection 2024 Jul.
Background Myofunctional therapy has shown promise in addressing sleep-disordered breathing. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of myofascial exercise and voluntary breathing techniques in reducing the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) among adolescents. Methodology In this randomized controlled study, adolescents aged 13-18 with sleep-disordered breathing were randomly assigned to one of three groups (n=40 per group): myofascial exercise, voluntary breathing techniques, and a standard care control group. Baseline assessments, including the AHI and sleep quality, were conducted before the interventions. A polysomnography (PSG) sleep study was performed in a sleep laboratory, with recordings conducted over six to eight hours during the night to calculate the AHI. The myofascial exercise and voluntary breathing technique groups received their respective interventions, while the control group received standard care. Post-intervention assessments were conducted to measure changes in AHI and other outcomes. Results The study found no significant differences in age, BMI, and gender among the three groups. However, significant differences were observed in AHI and sleep quality measures. The control group's AHI was 8.72 ± 1.78, whereas the myofascial exercise group (4.82 ± 1.42) and the voluntary breathing group (6.81 ± 1.83) exhibited more substantial reductions (p < 0.001). Similarly, while baseline sleep quality scores did not differ, significant improvements were observed in all groups post-intervention, with more substantial enhancements in the myofascial exercise (4.38 ± 1.19) and voluntary breathing (7.23 ± 1.76) groups. The analysis of baseline AHI categories revealed no significant differences, but at follow-up, significant variations emerged among the groups, indicating greater reductions in AHI categories in the myofascial exercise and voluntary breathing groups compared to the control group. Conclusion These findings indicate that incorporating myofascial exercises or voluntary breathing techniques into treatment plans for adolescents with sleep-disordered breathing can result in significant improvements in AHI and overall sleep quality.
背景 肌功能治疗在解决睡眠呼吸障碍方面已显示出前景。本研究旨在调查肌筋膜锻炼和自主呼吸技术在降低青少年呼吸暂停低通气指数（AHI）方面的疗效。
方法 在这项随机对照研究中，将13至18岁患有睡眠呼吸障碍的青少年随机分为三组（每组n = 40）：肌筋膜锻炼组、自主呼吸技术组和标准护理对照组。在干预前进行包括AHI和睡眠质量在内的基线评估。在睡眠实验室进行多导睡眠图（PSG）睡眠研究，在夜间进行六至八小时的记录以计算AHI。肌筋膜锻炼组和自主呼吸技术组接受各自的干预，而对照组接受标准护理。干预后进行评估以测量AHI和其他结果的变化。
结果 研究发现三组在年龄、BMI和性别方面无显著差异。然而，在AHI和睡眠质量测量方面观察到显著差异。对照组的AHI为8.72±1.78，而肌筋膜锻炼组（4.82±1.42）和自主呼吸组（6.81±1.83）的降低幅度更大（p < 0.001）。同样，虽然基线睡眠质量评分无差异，但干预后所有组均观察到显著改善，肌筋膜锻炼组（4.38±1.19）和自主呼吸组（7.23±1.76）的改善更为显著。对基线AHI类别分析显示无显著差异，但在随访时，各组之间出现显著差异，表明与对照组相比，肌筋膜锻炼组和自主呼吸组的AHI类别降低幅度更大。
结论 这些发现表明，将肌筋膜锻炼或自主呼吸技术纳入患有睡眠呼吸障碍青少年的治疗计划中，可显著改善AHI和整体睡眠质量。
