Robotic beds for the treatment of positional obstructive sleep apnea - A randomized cross-over pilot trial

Interventions leading to avoidance of supine position and thus reducing the likelihood of upper airway collapse during sleep are a treatment approach for positional obstructive sleep apnea (POSA). The aim of this randomized cross-over trial was to assess the effect of two actuated beds (trunk-elevation and sideward-tilting) on OSA severity and sleep fragmentation in POSA.

After baseline polysomnography, adult patients with POSA were randomly assigned to two nights of intervention in the intelligent sleep apnea bed ISABel1 and ISABel2. In the case of obstructive apnea or hypopnea, ISABel1 elevated the upper body by 50° and ISABel2 induced a unilateral bed tilt of 40°, with both interventions lasting 10 min. Sustained trunk elevations without sliding down (ISABel1) and position change from supine to non-supine (ISABel2) were defined as successful interventions.

Six adult men (57 ± 11 years, BMI 28 ± 4 kg/m2, AHI 39 ± 15/h) with POSA were included. Neither trunk elevation (ISABel1) nor side tilt (ISABel2) - approximately 10 interventions per night - significantly reduced apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), whereas trunk elevation showed a tendency to reduce supine AHI. Actuated beds had no effect on sleep efficiency and arousals. Only 13 % of side tilts in ISABel2 resulted in a successful shift to a non-supine position. The time to the next respiratory event after bed movement was longer in the trunk elevating bed than in the side-tilting bed.

Trunk elevating beds decrease supine AHI and both side-tilting and trunk elevating beds increase the time to the next obstructive apnea or hypopnea.