In addition to lifestyle interventions, treatments for obstructive sleep apnoea focus on maintaining upper airway patency. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is recommended as first-line therapy. Beneficial cardiovascular effects of CPAP include increased intrathoracic pressure, reduced left ventricular preload and afterload, and reduced transmural cardiac pressure gradients. CPAP also reduces nocturnal ischaemia and blood pressure, and decreases the risk of post-treatment atrial fibrillation recurrence. However, secondary prevention with CPAP did not significantly reduce the rate of major cardio- and cerebrovascular events in the SAVE study. Mandibular advancement devices, surgery, and upper airway stimulation are options for patients unwilling to use or tolerate CPAP. Central sleep apnoea and Cheyne–Stokes respiration are common in patients with heart disease, especially heart failure. Adaptive servo-ventilation is the most effective therapy for alleviating central sleep apnoea with Cheyne–Stokes respiration. However, it is now contraindicated in heart failure patients with an ejection fraction of 45% or lower and predominant central sleep apnoea because of an increased risk of cardiovascular death, based on SERVE-HF study results. However, adaptive servo-ventilation may still have a role in other settings, including heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. Phrenic nerve stimulation is a new treatment modality that has shown promising results in a feasibility study. Hypoventilation is another breathing disorder that needs effective management. Data in cardiovascular disease are lacking, but CPAP and non-invasive ventilation have been shown to be effective in patients with obesity hypoventilation syndrome. Furthermore, effective reduction of chronic hypercapnia during home non-invasive ventilation treatment in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has been shown to significantly improve survival.
Central sleep apnoea and heart failure (Part I)
