Improvement in obstructive sleep apnea after a tailored behavioural sleep medicine intervention targeting healthy...

The aim of the present single-centre randomised controlled trial was to assess the effect of a behavioural sleep medicine (BSM) intervention on obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) severity in patients who have been referred for new treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).

After baseline assessment including ventilatory and anthropometric parameters, and physical activity monitoring, 86 patients who were overweight (BMI ≥ 25) and had moderate-severe OSA with apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ≥ 15 were randomised into a control group (CG; CPAP and advice about weight loss) or an experimental group (ExpG; CPAP and BSM intervention targeting physical activity and eating behaviour). The BSM intervention comprised 10 individual sessions with a dietician and a physiotherapist and included behaviour change techniques such as goal setting and self-monitoring. After 6 months, a new recording of ventilatory parameters was performed without CPAP.

In ExpG, 40% (n = 14) had improved from severe to moderate or mild OSA or from moderate to mild OSA compared to 16.7% in CG (n = 6, p = 0.02). Further, a lower AHI and amount body fat at baseline were correlated with improvement in severity class. Being in ExpG implied a mean improvement in AHI by 9.7 and an odds ratio of 4.5 for improving in severity classification.

The results highlight the clinical importance of lifestyle modifications in conjunction with CPAP treatment in patients with OSA.