Global Courant 2023-05-11 04:51:29
Researchers at McMaster University have done just that found it what they call the “most effective” treatment for people with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) who suffer from excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS).
Dena Zeraatkar and Tyler Pitre published their results in the peer-reviewed publication Annals of Internal Medicine, claiming that the drug solriamfetol is “probably the best drug” for EDS.
Their findings are based on a systematic review of 14 clinical trials of anti-fatigue medications involving 3,085 people, as well as analyzing data from MEDLINE, CENTRAL, EMBASE, and ClinicalTrials.gov in a dedicated network meta-analysis.
Their research ran from October 2022 to January 2023.
EDS is when someone falls asleep or has a desire for sleep when expected to be awake, and it is often a symptom of sleep-related disorders.
The standard treatment for OSA is a positive airway pressure (PAP) mask that uses pressurized air to support the lungs during sleep. However, some people with OSA still experience EDS and may benefit from anti-fatigue medications.
Tyler Pitre, author of the study and a general practitioner in internal medicine at McMaster University and incoming respiratory fellow at the University of Toronto, suggests that people with OSA should use their PAP machine first to treat EDS, and if they are still sleepy are, they may turn to medication for treatment.
“Fifteen to 30 percent of people in North America have a diagnosis of OSA and the prevalence could be much higher as many others remain undiagnosed. Many people have symptoms because the condition is strongly associated with obesity, which affects a large and increasing number of people in Canada, the United States and other high-income countries,” Pitre added. “Among those patients, many will have EDS, which affects their quality of life, making them less productive and also putting them at risk for other psychological problems. Improving this situation is of paramount importance to physicians.”
According to Pitre, OSA affects nearly a billion people in the world and many of them are at risk for EDS.
While the study determined that solriamfetol is “probably the best” anti-fatigue drug for EDS, senior study author and an assistant professor in the Department of Anesthesia Zeraatkar says the drugs armodafinil-modafinil and pitolisant are also effective in fighting fatigue.
Zeraatkar also says that solriamfetol can raise blood pressure and could be risky for people with OSA, as many of them also have cardiovascular problems.
“It would be interesting to see how effective these anti-fatigue drugs will be for treating related illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome and long-term COVID, now that we know they work for a similar condition,” Zeraatkar added.
Coverage for this story was paid for through the Meta-funded The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project.
