Telemedizin im Schlaflabor

: Einsatz von Telemedizin im Schlaflabor in Diagnostik und Therapie bei CPAP-Patient*Innen

Abstract

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the gold standard treatment for moderate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to keep the airway open during sleep. Compliance, or regular use of CPAP therapy, is critical to success, but low compliance rates remain a challenge. This study investigated the impact of telemedicine support on the duration of CPAP use and apnea-hypopnea-index (AHI) in OSA patients. The study analyzed data from 970 patients, with one group receiving telehealth support and the other not. After 4 months, the average duration of CPAP use decreased in both groups, with no significant differences in AHI. In the second part of the study, an ambulatory polysomnography system was compared with standard polysomnography (PSG) for correlation. A very high (ρ = 0.92) and a high (ρ = 0.70) positive correlation was found between the two pulmonary parameters apnea-hypopnea-index (AHI) and oxygen desaturation index (ODI). Although no significant improvement in CPAP compliance was achieved, it is expected that telemedicine will be increasingly integrated into sleep medicine in the future. This is particularly true for the use of ambulatory polysomnography systems as a preliminary diagnostic test. The increasing prevalence of sleep disorders with a limited number of sleep medicine centers leads to long waiting times and inadequate care for patients. The targeted use of telemedicine can help to address this. However, further research and development is needed to realize the full potential of telemedicine applications.

Date of Award	Jun 2024
Original language	German (Austria)
Awarding Institution	FH Gesundheitsberufe OÖ GmbH
Supervisor	Thomas Haslwanter (Supervisor)