Orr W C, Martin R J
Arch Intern Med. 1981 Jul;141(8):990-2.
Six adults with tonsillar enlargement were shown via all-night polygraphic recordings to have varying degrees of upper airway obstruction during sleep. All but one of these patients were noted to have profound and debilitating daytime sleepiness. All patients had extremely loud snoring with anecdotal reports of apnea. Postoperatively all patients reported a marked reduction in snoring and substantial improvement in their daytime sleepiness. Postoperative sleep laboratory evaluation in four cases revealed nearly complete obliteration of upper airway obstruction and improvement in several objective sleep measurements, such as sleep-onset latency. We conclude that even relatively mild tonsillar enlargement can play an important role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea.
通过整夜多导睡眠图记录显示，六名患有扁桃体肿大的成年人在睡眠期间存在不同程度的上呼吸道阻塞。除其中一名患者外，其他所有患者均有严重且使人衰弱的日间嗜睡症状。所有患者均鼾声极大，并有呼吸暂停的传闻报道。术后所有患者均报告打鼾明显减轻，日间嗜睡情况有显著改善。对四例患者进行术后睡眠实验室评估发现，上呼吸道阻塞几乎完全消除，多项客观睡眠指标有所改善，如入睡潜伏期。我们得出结论，即使是相对轻度的扁桃体肿大也可能在阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停的发病机制中起重要作用。
