[Respiratory disturbance during sleep induced by vagus nerve stimulator]

Vagus nerve stimulation can be used in parallel with drug therapy as adjuvant therapy for severe epilepsy. In approximately half of the patients the number of seizures decreases by at least 50%. The most common adverse effects reported for the therapy include mild laryngeal and upper respiratory tract symptoms and dysfunctions, and in some cases, also development of respiratory disturbances during sleep. We describe two patients in whom vagus nerve stimulation induced sleep apnea. The problem was resolved by changing the settings of the stimulator. Sleep apnea syndrome should be kept in mind when planning vagus nerve stimulation therapy and monitoring the response to therapy.