Dados do Trabalho

Título

Effectiveness and adherence of patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) treated with Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT): A pilot study.

Introdução

Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT) is related to the treatments indicated for patients with mild and moderate OSA (1), (2), (3), (4), one of the main challenges for OMT is to achieve a percentage of adherence that guarantees the scope of results (5), (6); Few studies measure adherence rates and their relationship with treatment effectiveness, which can be achieved with mHealth and telemedicine methodologies (7), (8).

Objetivo

To measure the effectiveness and adherence in a group of adult patients with mild and moderate Obstructive Sleep Apnea treated with Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT) administered through the Dr. Neumo®app.

Métodos

25 patients with OSA, treated with OMT through the Dr. Neumo®app, composed of: 6 levels of complexity, 54 sessions, remote controls between each level, symptom reporting function; App monitoring by therapist and registration of day and time of access; which included sleep hygiene practices, oropharyngeal exercises, and mindfulness strategies for breathing, chewing, and swallowing functions. Output indicators were measured by type 2 polysomnography.

Resultados

In a window between November 1, 2021 and May 15, 2022, 3 groups of patients were identified according to the time it took to complete the treatment: (a) Average group: 12 weeks, (b) Outstanding group: less than 11 weeks and (c) Large group: 13 weeks or more.
The p-values calculated for the student's t-tests allow us to conclude that the OMT administered through the Dr. Neumo®app manages to significantly reduce (with a level of 5%) the score on the Epworth sleepiness scales (p-value of 0.00097), the Apnea Hypopnea Index (p-value of 0.0008) and the Snoring Index (p-value of 4.1x10-5). The results indicate a better performance in women and in patients who finish treatment less than 13 weeks and a poor performance in men and in the extended group.
The initial expectations of the treatment (Achieve a restful sleep, improve the quality of life and improve the quality of sleep) were significantly associated with the achievements perceived by the patients calculated through the Fischer exact test (p-value 0.0002): a) Restful sleep b) Improvement in sleep quality c) No improvement in sleep quality and d) non-restful sleep.

Conclusões

Conclusions:
- The OMT administered through the Dr. Neumo®app would allow the measurement of adherence and efficacy rates of patients.
- OMT was effective in treating patients with mild and moderate OSA

Palavras -chave

Myofunctional Therapy, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, mHealth