Speech therapy proposals to the snoring patient

Abstract

Introduction: Sleep is an essential part of life. It is through it that we have restructured the physical exhaustion suffered during the day. The Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) syndrome is characterized by fragmentation of sleep by pauses in breathing (apnea) and can cause many health hazards. Objective: To identify the results of miofunctional therapy in subjects diagnosed with OSA and compare the results before and after therapy. Methods: The study was conducted in the Speech Therapy School Clinic with eight volunteers, four of each sex and aged 40 to 65 years. First, it was reported the evaluation of oropharyngeal structures, measured weight, height and daytime sleepiness. Afterwards, the subjects underwent speech therapy with toning exercises for the oropharyngeal region, for 10 weeks and finally, the evaluation was performed again. Results: In most subjects, nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal measurements increased, the Malampati range went from Class III to Class II, excessive daytime sleepiness went from grade three to grade zero in all situations, the body weight and body mass decreased. The neck circumference and the face lower third measure decreased in all subjects, as muscle contraction promotes its reduction. Conclusions: Myofunctional therapy showed valid in the treatment of OSA, because the toning exercises increased upper airway diameter, reducing collapses that cause apnea episodes. The results show that the speech therapist is able to work on multidisciplinary rehabilitation of this syndrome.