上咽张肌活性在入睡后减弱,在REM期睡眠,紧张性和时相性扩张活动减弱更加明显。睡眠时,咽张肌神经冲动降低,呼气末正压下降,使得呼气末时咽部易于塌陷。[20]Schwab RJ, Gefter WB, Hoffman EA, et al. Dynamic upper airway imaging during awake respiration in normal subjects and patients with sleep disordered breathing. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1993;148:1385-1400.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8239180?tool=bestpractice.comOSA患者咽部横截面积减少,增加了睡眠呼吸暂停的风险。[20]Schwab RJ, Gefter WB, Hoffman EA, et al. Dynamic upper airway imaging during awake respiration in normal subjects and patients with sleep disordered breathing. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1993;148:1385-1400.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8239180?tool=bestpractice.com[21]Isono S, Remmers JE, Tanaka A, et al. Anatomy of pharynx in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and in normal subjects. J Appl Physiol. 1997;82:1319-1326.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9104871?tool=bestpractice.com清醒时,OSA患者颏舌肌活性增加以代偿咽部面积减少,维持咽部张力。入睡后颏舌肌活动下降,咽部阻塞。[22]Mezzanotte WS, Tangel DJ, White DP. Waking genioglossal EMG in sleep apnea patients versus normal controls (a neuromuscular compensatory mechanism). J Clin Invest. 1992;89:1571-1579.http://www.jci.org/articles/view/115751/pdfhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1569196?tool=bestpractice.com气道阻塞可以导致低氧血症和高碳酸血症,其程度还取决于基础肺部疾病和储备能力。呼吸暂停和呼吸浅慢在引起皮层或皮层下觉醒后终止,伴随的交感神经活性增加从而导致心律失常和血管收缩。如觉醒后再次入睡,咽部阻塞可再次出现,整个过程周而复始。
OSA患者多存在心血管、代谢和神经认知障碍,这可能与低氧血症、交感兴奋和觉醒有关。OSA患者的高血压、卒中、心肌梗死、心力衰竭、心律失常、认知功能障碍、抑郁、代谢综合征、氧化应激和车祸明显增多。[23]Nieto FJ, Young TB, Lind BK, et al. Association of sleep-disordered breathing, sleep apnea, and hypertension in a large community-based study. Sleep Heart Health Study. JAMA. 2000;283:1829-1836 (erratum in: JAMA. 2002;288:1985).http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/283/14/1829http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10770144?tool=bestpractice.com[24]Yaggi HK, Concato J, Kernan WN, et al. Obstructive sleep apnea as a risk factor for stroke and death. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:2034-2041.http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa043104#t=articlehttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16282178?tool=bestpractice.com[25]Marin JM, Carrizo SJ, Vicente E, et al. Long-term cardiovascular outcomes in men with obstructive sleep apnoea-hypopnoea with or without treatment with continuous positive airway pressure: an observational study. Lancet. 2005;365:1046-1053.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15781100?tool=bestpractice.com[26]Gami AS, Pressman G, Caples SM, et al. Association of atrial fibrillation and obstructive sleep apnea. Circulation. 2004;110:364-367.http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/110/4/364http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15249509?tool=bestpractice.com[27]Naegele B, Thouvard V, Pepin JL, et al. Deficits of cognitive executive functions in patients with sleep apnea syndrome. Sleep. 1995;18:43-52.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7761742?tool=bestpractice.com[28]Dyugovskaya L, Lavie P, Lavie L. Increased adhesion molecules expression and production of reactive oxygen species in leukocytes of sleep apnea patients. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2002;165:934-939.http://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10.1164/ajrccm.165.7.2104126#.UtPNV9JdUREhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11934717?tool=bestpractice.com[29]Ellen RL, Marshall SC, Palayew M. Systematic review of motor vehicle crash risk in persons with sleep apnea. J Clin Sleep Med. 2006;2:193-200.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17557495?tool=bestpractice.com