Radiofrequency Volumetric Tissue Reduction In The Treatment Of Sleep Disordered Breathing: A Systematic Review

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of radiofrequency volumetric tissue reduction(RFTVR) in the treatment of sleep disordered breathing(SDB) Method: We searched The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials(Issue 1, 2005), MEDILINE (1950 to Apr.2005 ), EMBASE(1989 to Apr. 2005), CINAHL (1982 to Dec.2000) ,VIP(1989 to Dec.2004), CJFD (1979 to 2005), WANFANG DATA(1977 to 2004), and CMDisc(1978 to 2005) .The bibliographies of all papers retrieved in full text form and relevant narrative reviews were searched for additional publications.All randomised controlled clinical trials(RCT) or quasi-randomized controlled trials (quasi-RCT) or prospective cohort studies of RFVTR alone or in combination with other treatments compared with placebo or other treatments were included .Data were extracted independently from the trial reports by the two authors.Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan software. Result: There were 11 studies including 540 patients met the inclusion criteria for the review,among which five were RCTs,six were prospective cohort studies,and all trials were of lower methodological quality.RPTVR showed benefit over placebo in apnea index(AI),but this benefit was not seen in other polysomnography(PSG)parameters,symptom and quality of life,psychomotor vigilance pain , swallowing difficulty and adverse...