Impacts Of Oropharyngeal Exercise On Daytime Sleepiness,Sleep Quality And Quality Of Life After Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty

Objective:To explore the impacts of oropharyngeal exercise(OE)on daytime sleepiness,sleep quality,and quality of life after uvulopalatopharyngoplasty(UPPP)for obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome(OSAHS).Method:In this study,66 follow-up patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome after uvulopalatopharyngoplasty were collected from December 2020 to March 2022 at the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine of the First Affiliated Hospital of ANHUI Medical University according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria.All patients were treated in the Department of Otolaryngology,Head and Neck Surgery of our hospital.The patients were randomly divided into experimental group(N=32)and control group(N=34)before surgery,but treated with uvulopalatopharyngoplasty by the same medical team.In addition to the general treatment(including smoking cessation,alcohol cessation,weight loss,aerobic exercise,etc.),patients in the experimental groups also received oropharyngeal exercise through soft palate,tongue and facial muscle training and oral and maxillofacial function training 1 week after surgery.Epworth Sleepiness Scale(ESS),Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index(PSQI),and Calgary Sleep Apnea-related Quality of Life Inventory(SAQLI)were used to assess the daytime sleepiness,sleep quality,and quality of daily life of patients in both groups before and 3 months after surgery,respectively.Results:(1)66 patients with OSAHS were finally included in this study.There was no statistical difference(P > 0.05)between the two groups in terms of general data such as age,gender,body mass index(BMI),history of previous underlying diseases,and disease severity data such as respiratory disturbed index(AHI),nocturnal minimum oxygen saturation(LSa O2),sagittal diameter and coronal diameter of the narrowest part of the upper airway.And there was no statistically significant difference(P > 0.05)regarding preoperative ESS scores,PSQI scores and SAQLI scores of the patients.(2)After 3months,the daytime sleepiness,sleep quality and quality of daily life of patients in both groups were re-evaluated.It could be found that the ESS scores of patients in both groups were significantly lower than that before treatment(P < 0.001).The median score of the experimental group was 2 and that of the control group was 7,indicating that the ESS score of the experimental group was significantly lower than that of the control group,with statistical significance(P < 0.001).PSQI scores in both groups were significantly lower than that before treatment(P < 0.05).The median score of the experimental group was 6 and the median score of the control group was 7,making no statistical significance concerning PSQI between the two groups(P > 0.05);the scores of each part and the total scores of SAQLI in both groups were significantly higher than those before treatment(P < 0.001).The daily life score in the experimental group were significantly higher than that in the control group(P < 0.05),indicating the difference was statistically significant(P < 0.05).The social interaction score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group,considering the difference to be statistically significant(P < 0.05).The difference regarding emotional state/emotion score between the two groups was not statistically significant(P > 0.05),the symptom score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group,the difference was statistically significant(P < 0.001),the total score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group,indicating a statistically significant difference(P < 0.05).Conclusion:Oropharyngeal exercise after UPPP can improve daytime sleepiness symptoms and quality of life in patients with OSAHS,but there is no obvious advantage in improving sleep quality compared with the control group.