The forced oscillation technique (FOT) has been demonstrated to be a very sensitive tool for the assessment of upper airway obstruction during nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). The present study was designed to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of a novel auto-CPAP device based exclusively on the FOT. Following manual CPAP titration, 18 patients with OSA (mean apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) 48.0 +/- 28.1) were allocated to conventional CPAP and auto-CPAP treatment under polysomnographic control in randomized order. The patients were asked to assess their subjective daytime sleepiness using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). The mean AHI during auto-CPAP treatment was 3.4 +/- 3.4 and was comparable with that obtained during conventional CPAP treatment (4.2 +/- 3.6). The analysis of sleep architecture, the arousal index (6.6 +/- 2.1 versus 7.3 +/- 4.4) or the ESS (5.6 +/- 1.8 versus 7.3 +/- 4.4) did not reveal any significant differences. However, the mean CPAP pressure during auto-CPAP treatment (0.84 +/- 0.26 kPa) and in particular the pressure applied in the lateral body position (0.74 +/- 0.35 kPa), was significantly lower than that employed in conventional CPAP treatment (0.93 +/- 0.16 kPa, both comparisons: p < 0.05). The auto-continuous positive airway pressure device proved equally as effective as conventional continuous positive airway pressure. However, the mean treatment pressure was significantly reduced, especially when patients were sleeping in the lateral position.
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