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Biomedical subjects

J H Peter

Publications and source records attributed to J H Peter.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

[Complications of nasal CPAP therapy. Consequences for general practice].

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of the obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is about 5% in the entire population. The amount of treatment-indications grows for this particular sleep-related breathing disorder due to the increasing usage of diagnostic screening tests. In most cases, the positive-pressure ventilation, PPV (nCPAP, nBiPAP) is considered as a highly effective form of treatment, in comparison to other treating methods. The residential polysomnographic supervised adjustment of the treatment is optimally applied to most of the patients. Due to the increasing number of the treated patients, the reports about the appearance of short-termed side effects during the adjustment of the PPV become more frequent. PATIENTS AND RESULTS: We report on 9 patients who showed complications during the initial stage of treatment. The most common one, during the nCPAP-therapy, was the increase of central apneas. Because of this complication, a rapid optimization of the respiratory pressure or a change to a nBiPAP-therapy was necessary in 5 of the patients. 2 of the patients showed cardiac arrhythmias, some of which were severe. One patient produced a remarkable central hypoventilation during the initial phase of a nCPAP-therapy. The nBiPAP-titration combined with right-heart-catheter monitoring could demonstrate in another patient a possible cardiac decompensation through an increased ventilatory pressure. CONCLUSION: The risk of a positive-pressure ventilation is higher in patients with accompanying cardiac, pulmonary, neuropsychiatric and/or otorhinolaryngologic disorders. Considering the various predisposing factors of the patients we suggest an intensive apparative monitoring as well as stuff-supervision during the introduction to a respiratory treatment. If complications appear, a rapid improvement of the ventilatory pressure or a change to another respiratory treatment is indicated.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

Electrophysiologic evaluation of sinus node function and atrioventricular conduction in patients with prolonged ventricular asystole during obstructive sleep apnea.

In 15 patients with ventricular asystole of 8.5 +/- 3.5 seconds (range 5.0 to 16.8) occurring exclusively during obstructive sleep apnea, electrophysiologic study of sinus node function and atrioventricular conduction before and after administration of intravenous atropine (0.02 mg/kg) was performed. Electrophysiologic parameters of sinus node function were normal in 12 of 15 patients (80%) and atrioventricular (AV) nodal function was normal in 7 patients (47%). Almost all abnormal findings of sinus node function and AV nodal function were reversible by administration of atropine. The HisPurkinje system function was normal in 6 patients (40%). Prolonged HV intervals (57 to 73 ms) were found in 9 patients (60%). Intra- or infra-His block was not observed in any patient. In summary, electrophysiologic parameters of sinus node function and AV conduction were normal or only slightly abnormal in all 15 study patients, which suggests that prolonged ventricular asystole during obstructive sleep apnea is not due to fixed or anatomic disease of the sinus node or the AV conduction system.

Atrioventricular Node↗
PubMed1996

Unattended continuous positive airway pressure titration. Clinical relevance and cardiorespiratory hazards of the method.

The high cost of in-laboratory sleep studies and the insufficiency of available nights in most sleep laboratories has prompted clinical trials in an attempt to find an effective and safe method for continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) titration in the unsupervised home environment. Earlier publications focused on the effectiveness of this new method but did not indicate the potential hazard and the selection criteria of patients. We accomplished a prospective study to evaluate a machine-controlled CPAP titration method in an unselected group of 21 patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) requiring CPAP therapy. Unattended CPAP titrations were completed in the sleep laboratory, followed by conventional CPAP titration night. The CPAP levels assessed through automatic titrations showed strong agreement with those from the control nights. Fifteen patients had no pathologic cardiorespiratory events during machine-controlled titration. Undesirable cardiorespiratory complications developed in six patients with underlying cardiorespiratory disorder. Two patients had to stop the procedure. Two patients needed a reset of the actual pressure to baseline because of central apneas and one patient because of high-grade arrhythmia. The machine-controlled CPAP titration enabled reliable assessment of an effective pressure and appeared to be safe in selected patients with OSA. However, because the method caused significant adverse effects in some patients, we recommend that unattended CPAP titration not be attempted in patients with underlying cardiorespiratory disease.

Arrhythmias, Cardiac↗
PubMed1996

Risk of traffic accidents in patients with sleep-disordered breathing: reduction with nasal CPAP.

Sleepiness whilst driving constitutes a road safety risk. Sleep-related breathing disorders are the most frequent medical cause of daytime sleepiness, and untreated patients with this condition have been shown to be at a higher risk of having accidents while driving. This study addressed the question of the extent to which treatment of sleep-disordered breathing by nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) is related to changes in patient's accident risk. Seventy eight male patients requiring treatment of sleep-related breathing disorders with nCPAP were enrolled in the study. The protocol included a questionnaire dealing with alertness-related problems while driving, an 80 min vigilance test, and the Multiple Sleep Latency Test. These baseline evaluations were repeated after 1 year of treatment with nCPAP. Fifty nine patients completed the study. The accident rate was significantly decreased from 0.8 per 100,000 km (untreated) to 0.15 per 100,000 km with nCPAP treatment. Variables that were considered to be likely to increase accident risk (sleeping spells, fatigue, vigilance test reaction time, daytime sleep latency) also improved with treatment. We conclude that treatment of sleep-disordered breathing by nasal continuous positive airway pressure is related to reduction in patient motor vehicle accident rates, probably due to the reversal of excessive daytime sleepiness.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1996

The effect of triazolam and flunitrazepam--two benzodiazepines with different half-lives--on breathing during sleep.

We performed a double-blind single-dose placebo/hypnotics crossover study randomized within groups to test the potential problems that a group of normal subjects, including subjects who snore, may face using hypnotic medications. Two benzodiazepine hypnotics--triazolam, 0.25 mg, and flunitrazepam, 2 mg tablets--were considered. Subjects were monitored with nocturnal polysomnography, including esophageal pressure (Pes) monitoring as a measure of respiratory efforts, and were given daytime performance tests. Results were analyzed for the total nocturnal sleep period and also by thirds of the night in consideration of the different half-lives of the studied drugs. Three specific respiratory variables were evaluated: mean breathing frequency for selected unit of time, "Delta Pes" (esophageal pressure at peak end-expiration minus Pes at peak end-inspiration) expressed in cm H2O, and the ratio of Delta Pes/Delta TI (inspiratory time), taken as an index of respiratory drive calculated for each respiratory cycle. There was no significant increase in either the respiratory disturbance index or the oxygen desaturation index (number of drops in arterial oxygen saturation of 4% or more per hour of sleep, as measured by pulse oximetry). There was a significant increase in mean breathing frequency with flunitrazepam compared with placebo, as well as a significantly larger percentage of time during sleep with Delta Pes above 10 cm H2O (taken as a cutoff point for normal respiratory effort) with both triazolam and flunitrazepam compared with placebo. These respiratory changes, even if significant, were minor but may become a liability in association with specific abnormalities.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Assessment of the nocturnal blood pressure relative to sleep stages in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

To determine the mean blood pressure relative to sleep stages, two nocturnal cardiorespiratory polysomnographs were recorded in 60 male patients with hypertension and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The mean age was 50.2 years, the BMI 32.0 kg/m2, the respiratory disturbance index (RDI) 44, and the blood pressure by the WHO protocol 158/98 mm Hg. A new evaluation program was used to determine the invasively measured mean arterial pressure (mean +/- SEM) and heart rate (mean +/- SEM) during sleep (mean total sleep time 361 +/- 48 min) referred to sleep stages 1 (99.5 +/- 1.5 mm Hg/67.6 +/- 1.1 bpm), 2 (98.7 +/- 1.6 mm Hg/66.6 +/- 1.1 bpm), 3 (97.6 +/- 1.8 mm Hg/67.4 +/- 1.3 bpm), and 4 (97.6 +/- 2.2 mm Hg/66.3 +/- 1.6 bpm) and to REM sleep (103.3 +/- 1.7 mm Hg/68 +/- 1.2 bpm) as 1 s mean values and to compare them with the waking state (98.3 +/- 1.6 mm Hg/83.6 +/- 1.1 bpm). There was no physiological fall in blood pressure in patients with pronounced OSA. Sleep-stage-specific analysis of invasive continuous blood pressure signals is the gold standard. The sleep structure is disturbed less than with other methods.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[Risk of accident due to hypersomnia: relevance for sleep medicine].

Hypersomnia is increasingly recognized as a potential causal factor for accidents. Information of the general public about scientific knowledge on the area of fatigue and sleepiness is, as well as the recognition and treatment of disorders impairing vigilance, an important task for sleep medicine. Fulfilling this task will warrant an important contribution to increase road safety. Sleep related disordered breathing is an example that shows the sense and the need for a qualitatively good medical care of patients with sleep related disorders.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1996

[nCPAP therapy and maxillary and mandibular osteotomy compared: attention during the day in obstructive sleep apnea].

11 patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and maxillary and mandibular characteristics participated. All patients received nCPAP therapy for at least 3 months. The surgical treatment principle consists of 10 mm maxillary and mandibulary advancement. Cardiorespiratory polysomnography (cPSG) control was assessed 3 months after surgical treatment. The daytime vigilance was investigated using a 90-min 4-choice reaction-time test. Patients reports of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) were confirmed by pre-treatment vigilance testing. Accordingly, daytime vigilance, respiratory and polysomnography patterns were improved with nCPAP and surgical treatment in a likewise manner. The tolerance to monotonous situations increased distinctly with nCPAP as well as after osteotomy. Surgical treatment of OSA in carefully selected cases has positive effects on sleep and daytime vigilance. There were no significant differences in the cPSG nor in vigilance tests with regard to nCPAP therapy.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[Economic aspects of sleep medicine].

According to its rules it is the task of the German Sleep Research Society (DGSM) to promote scientific research in the area of Sleep Medicine in Germany and to transform scientific results into clinical practice for the benefit of patient care. The international classification of sleep disorders (ICSD) distinguishes more than 80 different disorders which can be treated due to scientific progress which has been made over the last 50 years. The conversion of established scientific knowledge in the field of sleep medicine into an improved clinical management of patients should not be prevented by the lack of sufficiently equipped sleep units. The federal government has stated that, due to financial constraints, it would not consent to any measures which might lead to a budget increase, such as case oriented special payments for certain diseases. Thus, an adequate number of sleep units can only be provided by integrating these units into the budget of the respective hospitals and departments, paid by the local insurance companies, thus providing the necessary financial resources to the sleep units. Many services in the area of sleep medicine can be covered by the existing reimbursement system. In some cases, however, a definite diagnosis can only be made by the use of complete polysomnography (PSG). For a complete PSG the additional costs have been calculated by the DGSM to be 1195,-DM per 24 h. Sleep units dealing with both diagnostically and therapeutically complex cases such as patients requiring complex forms of nasal ventilation, depend on an increase in the reimbursement by the insurance companies to cover the expenses involved. For each sleep unit, a "case-mix" can be calculated which will include both complex and less complex cases. The costs using this case mix will be considerably lower than the cost for a complete PSG. Sleep units provide the basis for education and quality assessment which are necessary for competent patient management in the future. Adequate diagnostic and therapeutic facilities in sleep medicine provide the basis for patient care, contribute to improved health standards and, thus, reduce social costs of these frequent diseases.

Budgets↗
PubMed1996

Electrical stimulation of upper airway musculature.

Investigators have postulated that pharyngeal collapse during sleep in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may be alleviated by stimulating the genioglossus. The effect of electrical stimulation (ES) of the genioglossus on pharyngeal patency was examined in an isolated feline upper airway preparation and in apneic humans during sleep. We found that stimulation of the genioglossus (n = 8) and of the hypoglossal nerve (n = 1) increased maximum airflow through the isolated feline upper airway in humans during sleep. Additional findings in the isolated feline upper airway suggest that such increases in airflow were due to decreases in pharyngeal collapsibility. The evidence suggests that improvements in airflow dynamics with electrical stimulation are due to selective recruitment of the genioglossus, rather than due to nonspecific activation of the pharyngeal musculature or arousal from sleep. The implications of these results for future therapy with ES are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

REM-sleep-hypertension in obstructive sleep apnea.

Previous investigations involving continuous blood pressure (BP) monitoring have shown an important alteration of the 24-hour BP profile in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). We investigated the impact of REM sleep on the 24-hour BP cycle in 16 severe OSAS male patients (mean respiratory disturbance index = 66 +/- 16 events/hour of sleep), with hypertension (mean BP 162 +/- 21/105 +/- 11 mmHg World Health Organization (WHO) protocol). Two successive nights of polysomnography were performed, and arterial BP was monitored continuously during the second 24-hour period after brachial artery cannulation. During the daytime, subjects were kept awake and supine. At 3 p.m. BP was continuously monitored during quiet supine wakefulness for 20 minutes. Systolic, diastolic and mean BP and heart rate (HR) were analyzed and tabulated in mean values of 5 minute segments. Sleep/wake information were correlated with cardiovascular variables. Each uninterrupted REM sleep period was identified and comparison between the period of quiet supine wakefulness and REM sleep HR and BP values was performed. 8 OSAS patients presented a normal drop of the mean arterial BP during the nocturnal REM sleep periods compared to quiet supine wakefulness (mean value = -10.8 +/- 7.3 mmHg) ("dippers") while the other 8 subjects ("REM sleep non dippers"), revealed an elevated mean arterial BP during REM sleep (mean value = 18.9 +/- 10.9 mm Hg). The absence of the normal circadian BP dip seen during the nocturnal sleep period is considered as an indication of vascular risk. The REM sleep non dipping may play a role in this risk.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

[Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) therapy in obstructive sleep breathing disorders].

The therapeutic efficacy and the incidence of significant side effects of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) treatment was investigated in 1140 patients with sleep-related apnoea (1089 men, 51 women; mean age 53.2 +/- 9.2 [16-84] years). All had been treated for the condition with nCPAP at the Marburg University Medical Polyclinic between 1986 and 1992. The mean number of attacks of apnoea and/or hypopnoea per hour of sleep ("respiratory disturbance index", RDI) was 45.8 +/- 25.6 before treatment and 3.5 +/- 4.8 under nCPAP. 21.1% of patients had an apnoea index of no more than 10/h. 11.6% an RDI of no more than 15/h. The average airway pressure was 8.7 (3-18) cm H2O. The treatment was successful in 1023 patients and these decided to continue the treatment long-term. The RDI could not be lowered under 10/h in 63 patients, while 4 patients declined ambulant treatment despite the demonstrated efficacy of nCPAP. Three patients developed acute left ventricular failure in the initial phase of the treatment, while in another 16 patients long-persisting central hypoventilation was shown to occur. These data show that treatment with nCPAP can be employed for all degrees of severity of obstructive sleep apnoea. However, because of the potentially life-threatening side effects, the introduction of the treatment must be undertaken in the sleep laboratory under continuous monitoring.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Reversal of sinus arrest and atrioventricular conduction block in patients with sleep apnea during nasal continuous positive airway pressure.

Sinus arrest and atrioventricular (AV) block have been demonstrated in as much as 30% of patients with sleep apnea (SA). The reversal of heart block after tracheostomy has been shown. Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) now is widely used as the treatment of SA, but little data are available on the effect of nCPAP on heart block in patients with SA. During a 17-mo period 239 patients were found to have SA in an ambulatory study. Heart block was identified in 17 (16 male, one female) of these patients. Standard polysomnography and two-channel long-term ECG before and during nCPAP therapy were performed in order to assess the effect of nCPAP on SA and heart block. Mean age of the 17 patients was 50.7 yr (range, 27 to 78 yr), mean respiratory disturbance index (RDI) was 90/h (SD +/- 36.1) before nCPAP and 6/h (SD +/- 6.2) on the second treatment night. The number of episodes of heart block during sleep decreased significantly (p < 0.001) from 1,575 before therapy to 165 during nCPAP. In 12 patients (70.6%) heart block was totally prevented by nCPAP. In another three patients, there was a 71 to 97% reduction in the number of episodes of heart block on the second treatment night, and in two of them a complete reversal occurred thereafter. Two patients exhibited an increase in block frequency during nCPAP, which was reversed after 4 wk of nCPAP in one but persisted in the other.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Interactive computer program for the analysis of cardiovascular polysomnographic recordings.

A computer program for the analysis of blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation and some other polysomnographic signals is presented. The program analyzes the signals, digitized by using a 100 Hz sampling frequency, in one second resolution. The analysis and calibration periods can be entered to the program by pointing at the appropriate positions of the displayed signal with a mouse. As analysis results the program can produce statistical tables or graphical representations of the measured variables as a function of time. The program can be used in routine polysomnographic cardiovascular analysis and due to its flexibility also in experimental studies.

Blood Pressure↗