Comparison of the distribution of sleeping positions and the subjective sleeping comfort in two established procedures for outpatient sleep medical diagnostics

An alternative to polygraphy (PG) for clarifying obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) included in the partial update of the german S3 guideline "Sleep-related bearthing disorders in adults" is based on peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT)

Our hypothesis is that the PG leads to a reinforced supine position due to the relatively extensive cable connections. In the case of location-related sleep apnea, this could result in systematically overestimated severity indices. 61 patients received a PG and a PAT on two consecutive nights as part of an OSA evaluation. The order of use is randomized. The patients also receive questionnaires on sleeping comfort. In addition, signal losses and the need to repeat the investigation were documented. The diagnosis of OSA was made 55 times using PAT (AHI: 22 ± 18 / h), using PG 43 times (13 ± 13 / h). Significantly (p <0.001) more time in the supine position was measured in the PG (184 ± 104 min) compared to the PAT (169 ± 89 min). Repetition was necessary 9 times for the PG and 4 times for the PAT. There were no significant differences. 90% of patients preferred the PAT. The sleeping position seems to be influenced by the type of examination. Patients spent more time in the supine position for PG than for PAT examination. The cause here could be the larger number of discharge channels and the increased number of measuring sensors being attached. However, the increased supine position in PG was neither therapy nor diagnosis relevant in this study.

Poster-PDF A-1529.PDF

Conflict of interest

The first author points out the following conflict of interest: Itamar MedicalNeuwirth Medical Products

Publication History

Article published online:
13 May 2021