Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Arousal Threshold in Patients With Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
Status:
Withdrawn
Trial end date:
2022-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has traditionally been attributed only to a collapsible upper
airway. However, it is increasingly recognized that multiple additional non-anatomical
mechanisms contribute to the disease. Higher rates of OSA in patients with post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) than in those without PTSD have been reported however the mechanism
behind this increased prevalence has not been investigated. Our hypothesis is that patients
with PTSD have a predisposition to OSA due to a lower respiratory arousal threshold (wake up
too easily) than patients without PTSD. The goal of this project will be to study and compare
the ArTH in patients with PTSD and those without. In addition, we plan to see whether
medications can be used to increase the arousal threshold and treat OSA in patients with
PTSD.