Do half of patients with obstructive sleep apnea have a higher NREM AHI than REM AHI?
Although it is well known that OSA is generally worse in REM sleep because of the degree of desaturation and duration of apnea, a higher NREM AHI than REM AHI is found in up to one half of individuals. Most of the usual predictors for severity of OSA as a whole did not discriminate these groups. Further work needs to be done to determine the factors that discriminate these two groups and thus make AHI higher in NREM than REM.
An association was found between sublingual varices and hypertension. Examining the lateral borders of the tongue is easily done, causes no harm and could be a valuable method for the dental profession to take active part in preventive healthcare.