Apnea-hypopnea index, blood pressure, daytime sleepiness, and sleeping quality in obstructive sleep apnea: randomized-controlled responses to Shitali respiratory training.

BACKGROUND

Shitali respiratory or pranayamic yogic training might help to improve OSA symptoms but no study investigated the response of OSA to Shitali respiratory training (SRT).

AIM: This pranayama study aimed to investigate the response of OSA patients to SRT.

METHODS

Forty from-both-sex OSA patients with polysomnography-based apnea-hypopnea-index (AHI) evidence were included. Patients - aged 35-58 years old - with mild and moderate OSA (5 < AHI <30 events/hour) were included. The closed envelope procedure was used to randomize and assign the OSA patients into the SRT group (received a 12-week daily SRT, n = 20) or control group (served as a waitlist OSA group, n = 20). Outcome measures were blood systole (BS), respiratory rate (RR), visual analogue scale (VAS) that detected partner rating of sleep disturbance by the participants' snoring, AHI, blood diastole (BD), daytime sleepiness which was assessed by Epworth questionnaire (EQ), and sleeping quality which was assessed Pittsburgh quality of sleep index questionnaire (PQSIQ).

RESULTS

After the 12-week SRT, the within-SRT group comparison of RR, AHI, BS, PQSIQ, BD, EQ, and VAS showed significant improvements. The waitlist OSA group did not show any significant improvement in all measures.

CONCLUSION

The course of a 12-week SRT is a good treatment to improve RR, AHI, BS, PQSIQ, BD, EQ, and VAS of partner rating of sleep disturbance in patients with OSA.