Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Twins.

Importance: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common condition in older adult (aged >65 years) populations, but more mechanistic research is needed to individualize treatments. Previous evidence has suggested an association between OSA and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is limited by possible selection bias. High-quality research on this association with a careful evaluation of possible confounders may yield important mechanistic insight into both conditions and improve treatment efforts. Objective: To investigate the association of current PTSD symptoms and PTSD diagnosis with OSA. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study of twin pairs discordant for PTSD, which allows for adjustment for familial factors, was conducted using in-laboratory polysomnography from March 20, 2017, to June 3, 2019. The study sample comprised male veteran twins recruited from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry. The data analysis was performed between June 11, 2022, and January 30, 2023. Exposure: Symptoms of PTSD in twins who served in the Vietnam War. Diagnosis of PTSD was a secondary exposure. Main Outcomes and Measures: Obstructive sleep apnea was assessed using the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) (≥4% oxygen saturation criterion as measured by events per hour) with overnight polysomnography. Symptoms of PTSD were assessed using the PTSD Checklist (PCL) and structured clinical interview for PTSD diagnosis. Results: A total of 181 male twins (mean [SD] age, 68.4 [2.0] years) including 66 pairs discordant for PTSD symptoms and 15 pairs discordant for a current PTSD diagnosis were evaluated. In models examining the PCL and OSA within pairs and adjusted for body mass index (BMI) and other sociodemographic, cardiovascular, and psychiatric risk factors (including depression), each 15-point increase in PCL was associated with a 4.6 (95% CI, 0.1-9.1) events-per-hour higher AHI. Current PTSD diagnosis was associated with an adjusted 10.5 (95% CI, 5.7-15.3) events-per-hour higher AHI per sleep-hour. Comparable standardized estimates of the association of PTSD symptoms and BMI with AHI per SD increase (1.9 events per hour; 95% CI, 0.5-3.3 events per hour) were found. Conclusions and Relevance: This cross-sectional study found an association between PTSD and sleep-disordered breathing. The findings have important public health implications and may also enhance understanding of the many factors that potentially affect OSA pathophysiology.

Oral dextrose reduced procedural pain without altering cellular ATP metabolism in preterm neonates: a prospective randomized trial.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of 30% oral dextrose on biochemical markers of pain, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) degradation, and oxidative stress in preterm neonates experiencing a clinically required heel lance. STUDY DESIGN: Utilizing a prospective study design, preterm neonates that met study criteria (n = 169) were randomized to receive either (1) 30% oral dextrose, (2) facilitated tucking, or (3) 30% oral dextrose and facilitated tucking 2 min before heel lance. Plasma markers of ATP degradation (hypoxanthine, uric acid) and oxidative stress (allantoin) were measured before and after the heel lance. Pain was measured using the premature infant pain profile-revised (PIPP-R). RESULTS: Oral dextrose, administered alone or with facilitated tucking, did not alter plasma markers of ATP utilization and oxidative stress. CONCLUSION: A single dose of 30% oral dextrose, given before a clinically required heel lance, decreased signs of pain without increasing ATP utilization and oxidative stress in premature neonates.

Assessment of Clinical and Social Characteristics That Distinguish Presbylaryngis From Pathologic Presbyphonia in Elderly Individuals.

Importance: An aging population experiences an increase in age-related problems, such as presbyphonia. The causes of pathologic presbyphonia are incompletely understood. Objective: To determine what distinguishes pathologic presbyphonia from presbylaryngis. Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a cohort study at an outpatient otolaryngology subspecialty clinic of a tertiary academic referral center. Participants were consecutive consenting adults older than 74 years without laryngeal pathologic abnormalities who visited the clinic as participants or companions. Patient questionnaires, otolaryngologic, video stroboscopic, and voice examinations were compiled. Patients were divided into groups based on whether they endorsed a voice complaint. Three blinded authors graded stroboscopic examinations for findings consistent with presbylaryngis (vocal fold bowing, vocal process prominence, glottic insufficiency). Main Outcomes and Measures: Voice Handicap Index-10, Reflux Symptom Index, Cough Severity Index, Dyspnea Index, Singing Voice Handicap Index-10 , Eating Assessment Tool -10, Voice-Related Quality of Life (VRQOL), and Short-Form Health Survey; face-sheet addressing social situation, work, marital status, education, voice use, transportation; acoustic and aerodynamic measures; and a full otolaryngologic examination, including videostroboscopic imaging. Results: A total of 31 participants with dysphonia (21 were female; their mean age was 83 years [range, 75-97 years]) and 26 control participants (16 were female; their mean age was 81 years [range, 75-103 years]) completed the study. Presbylaryngis was visible in 27 patients with dysphonia (87%) and 22 controls (85%). VHI-10 and VRQOL scores were worse in patients with pathologic presbyphonia (median [range] VHI-10 scores, 15 (0-40) vs 0 (0-16) and median VRQOL score, 19 [0-43] vs 10 [10-23]). All other survey results were indistinguishable, and no social differences were elucidated. Acoustic measures revealed that both groups averaged lower than normal speaking fundamental frequency (mean [SD], 150.01 [36.23] vs 150.85 [38.00]). Jitter was 3.44% (95% CI, 2.46%-4.61%) for pathologic presbyphonia and 1.74% (95% CI, 1.35%-2.14%) for controls (d = 0.75). Shimmer means (95% CI) were 7.8 2 (6.08-10.06) for the pathologic presbyphonia group and 4.84 (3.94-5.72) for controls (d = 0.69). Aerodynamic measures revealed an odds ratio of 3.03 (95% CI, 0.83-11.04) for patients with a maximum phonation time of less than 12 seconds who had complaints about dysphonia. Conclusions and Relevance: Presbylaryngis is present in most ambulatory people older than 74 years. Some will endorse pathologic presbyphonia that has a negative effect on their voice and quality of life. Pathologic presbyphonia seems to be influenced by respiratory capacity and sex. Further study is required to isolate other social, physiologic, and general health characteristics that contribute to pathologic presbyphonia.