Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25335642›Full record

Trial reportSleep & breathing = Schlaf & Atmung2015

A promising concept of combination therapy for positional obstructive sleep apnea.

Marijke Dieltjens, Anneclaire V Vroegop, Annelies E Verbruggen, Kristien Wouters, Marc Willemen, Wilfried A De Backer, Johan A Verbraecken, Paul H Van de Heyning, Marc J Braem, Nico de Vries and 1 more

Open access · hybridAbstract readComparative StudyRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Sleep & breathing = Schlaf & Atmung, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 60 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
60citing papers in PubMed, 7 pooled it
7.1field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

60 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 142 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. European Respiratory Society guideline on non-CPAP therapies for obstructive sleep apnoea.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2021
    Guideline
  6. Positional therapy for obstructive sleep apnoea.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019
    Pooled it
  7. Pooled it
  8. Trial
  9. Trial
  10. Effect of position therapy and oral devices on sleep parameters in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2021
    Trial
  11. Trial
  12. Positional Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Model for Precision Sleep Medicine.Journal of otorhinolaryngology, hearing and balance medicine · 2026
    Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Review
  16. Review
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Positional therapy: is it ready for prime time?Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine · 2025
    Article
  20. Sleep-disordered breathing - clinical spectrum.Australian dental journal · 2024
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Marijke DieltjensDepartment of Special Care Dentistry, Antwerp University Hospital (UZA), Wilrijkstraat 10, 2650, Edegem, Belgium, Marijke.Dieltjens@uza.be.
Anneclaire V Vroegop
Annelies E Verbruggen
Kristien Wouters
Marc Willemen
Wilfried A De Backer
Johan A Verbraecken
Paul H Van de Heyning
Marc J Braem
Nico de Vries
Olivier M Vanderveken
Antwerp University Hospital · BEUniversity of Antwerp · BE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThe objective of this randomized controlled trial was to assess the additional effect of a chest-worn sleep position trainer (SPT) in patients with residual supine-dependent obstructive sleep apnea (sdOSA) under mandibular advancement device (MAD) therapy.

methodsBaseline and follow-up polysomnography with MAD were performed. Twenty patients with sdOSA under MAD therapy underwent two consecutive randomized polysomnographies: one with SPT and one with combination of SPT + MAD. Data are presented as median (quartile 1, quartile 3).

resultsThe SPT reduced the time spent in supine sleeping position compared to baseline and MAD therapy. Both MAD and SPT were individually effective in reducing the overall apnea/hypopnea index (AHI) significantly when compared to baseline from 20.8 (15.1; 33.6)/h at baseline to 11.0 (6.7; 13.8)/h and to 11.1 (3.5; 17.7)/h with MAD or SPT, respectively. The combination of SPT + MAD further reduced the overall AHI to 5.7 (3.6; 7.4), which was significantly lower than with MAD alone (p < 0.001) and SPT alone (p < 0.008), respectively.

conclusionsThe results of this study indicate that combination of SPT + MAD leads to a higher therapeutic efficacy in patients with sdOSA under MAD therapy when compared to one of the treatment modalities alone.

Indexed as

Combined Modality TherapyOcclusal SplintsAdultFemaleFollow-Up StudiesHumansMaleMandibular AdvancementMiddle AgedPatient PositioningPhysical Therapy ModalitiesPolysomnographySleep Apnea, ObstructiveSupine Position

Identifiers

PMID25335642
PMCPMC4873543
OpenAlexW2020408279

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.