Snoring Treatments, Do They Work

Posting Date: 10/03/2003

Results: Ages of the 40 study participants ranged from 19 to 67 years old with a mean age of 44. Body mass index ranged from 20 kg/m2 to 40 kg/m2, with an average of 28 kg/m2. Neck sizes were from 11.5 inches to 18.5 inches for an average of 15.4 inches. Epworth Sleepiness Scale scores ranged from zero to 22 with a mean of 10.85. Of the 40 tested patients, 3 missed one or more nights of SNAP testing making the true sample size 37.

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Wilcoxon signed rank tests were applied to compare differences between the tested snoring parameters of the night of product use and the following night without use. Windows-based SPSS Version 11.5 was used for the statistical analysis. The measures examined were the proportion of total snoring originating from the soft palate (%), the weighted average loudness of the snoring noise from the soft palate (dB), the averaged loudness of the total snoring noise over the recording period (dB), and the averaged palatal flutter frequency (Hz). These four parameters had been shown in previous studies to improve with surgical snoring procedures and are objectively statistically significant snoring parameters. Also studied was the RDI and daily subjective questionnaires completed by the patients and their bed partner. The questionnaire had multiple questions for each, relating to happiness with the previous night?s sleep, snore remedy and the desire to recommend the aid to others.

Between the four objective snoring variables, RDI and the subjective questions to patient and partner, no statistically significant difference was found between the product testing nights and control nights. A post-hoc power analysis was performed revealing 80%, and thus, adequate power to conclude no snoring improvement, objective or subjective, with use of the studied snore aids.