Hopes for Britain's ten million sleep apnoea sufferers were raised on Thursday as a London trial showed the condition can be treated by a machine commonly used for pain relief.
The TESLA trial, conducted by King’s College London (KCL) and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, assessed whether a transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TENS) machine could be used to alleviate symptoms of the sleeping disorder.
Sleep apnoea affects 13 per cent of men and 6 per cent of women between the ages of 30 and 75 in the UK, according to the UK Sleep Apnoea Trust. This equates to more than ten million Britons.
While the condition is frequently associated with snoring, people who are affected stop breathing many times during the night. It can cause excessive daytime sleepiness, a lack of attention and headaches.
Most people with the condition use a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine to relieve symptoms, a device which pumps air into a mask worn over the mouth or nose during sleep.
However, only 75 per cent of patients adhere to CPAP after three months, falling to 25 per cent after five years of treatment.
The TENS machine is a small, battery-operated device that has leads connected to sticky pads called electrodes. It is commonly used to reduce pain from conditions such as arthritis and during labour, but has not used for sleep apnoea before.
Participants in the trial received either a TENS machine or CPAP. Patients treated with the TENS machine showed improvements in nocturnal breathing and a significant reduction of daytime exhaustion.
The light and continuous stimulation of the TENS machine was found to help to keep the airway open while asleep, allowing easy breathing to continue.
The trial also showed that TENS treatment could be considered for patients who do not respond well to CPAP, providing a second line treatment that is cheaper and less time consuming to roll out than current alternatives.
A TENS machine can be purchased from Boots for as little as £46.
Professor Joerg Steier, a professor of respiratory and sleep medicine at KCL and a consultant from Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Not all patients with obstructive sleep apnoea are able to use CPAP therapy, often because the mask can be uncomfortable and in severe cases can lead to sleep deprivation.
“Alternatives for CPAP include mandibular advancement devices, and sometimes surgical options like hypoglossal nerve stimulation (HNS) which requires a pre-assessment, surgical implantation, activation and follow-up appointments.
“A TENS machine is non-invasive, has little side effects, and is cheap. The TESLA trial shows us the potential of a new therapeutic option, transcutaneous electrical stimulation, and it will be interesting to see how the method can be used in clinical practice.”
A multi-centre trial is now being planned to prove efficacy in different healthcare systems.
