Obstructive sleep apnea （OSA） is a disorder of breathing during sleep that disturbs sleep, resulting in daytime sleepiness and work errors. It is also known as a disease that develops various complications including cardiovascular disease if left untreated for a long period of time. What kind of characters are likely to develop OSA？ Why does moving the jawbone forward improve OSA？ I have done a lot of research on this question: risk of airway reduction due to differences in maxillofacial structure; pattern of airway expansion according to maxillo-mandibular advancement （MMA）; appropriate movement direction and distance of MMA; prediction of hydrodynamic airflow improvement before and after MMA surgery; and improvement of post-treatment sleep quality and changes in airway resistance using the cuff leak test. In this article, I summarize these studies in the hope that it may help researchers involved in sleep medicine in the future.

抄録全体を表示

Objective: The aim of this study was to clarify the morphological changes in the maxillofacial region due to long-term OA treatment and to identify factors that predict such changes from the initial maxillofacial structure.
Methods: The study subjects were 20 adult male patients with OSA who had been undergoing OA treatment at the Department of Oral Reconstructive Surgery, Niigata University Medical and Dental Hospital for at least 2 years.
Results: A positive correlation was found between the ratio of the S to O distance and the S to N distance at the time of initial examination and the change in facial axis and OB, and a negative correlation with the change in anterior and posterior facial heights.
Conclusions: It is suggested that the ratio of the S to O distance and the S to N distance at the time of initial examination could be used as a measurement item to focus on in predicting clockwise rotation of the mandible caused by long-term usage of OA.

抄録全体を表示