Study: Combine CPAP therapy, weight loss
By HME News Staff
Updated Mon March 11, 2013
PHILADELPHIA - A combination of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy and weight loss can help lower blood pressure for patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to a new study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. "This is the first study that addresses the incremental benefit of combining two previously identified strategies over either therapy alone,” stated lead author Julio Chirinos, MD, PhD, assistant professor medicine. “We found that the combination of weight loss and CPAP therapy is a better strategy to reduce blood pressure." In the study, which screened 544 subjects to identity those with obesity, OSA, and high levels of C-reactive protein (a common marker of heart disease), subjects who experienced the combination therapy were the only group to reach “statistical significance” in terms of blood pressure reduction, researchers found.
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