Atomoxetine and Oxybutynin in Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Summary

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is common and has major health implications but treatment options are limited. OSA patients show a marked reduction in upper airway (UA) dilator muscle activity at sleep onset and this phenomenon leads to increased collapsibility of UA compared to normal subjects. Until recently, the search for medicines to activate pharyngeal muscles in sleeping humans has been discouraging. However, exciting new animal research has shown that drugs with noradrenergic and antimuscarinic effects can restore pharyngeal muscle activity to waking levels. In this protocol the investigators will test the effect of atomoxetine (a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor) and oxybutynin (an antimuscarinic drug) administered together on OSA phenotype traits and OSA severity during sleep.

Timeline

Start

2016-09

Primary completion

2017-12

Completion

2018-01

Publications

• Taranto-Montemurro L, Messineo L, Sands SA, Azarbarzin A, Marques M, Edwards BA, Eckert DJ, White DP, Wellman A. The Combination of Atomoxetine and Oxybutynin Greatly Reduces Obstructive Sleep Apnea Severity. A Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Double-Blind Crossover Trial. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2019 May 15;199(10):1267-1276. doi: 10.1164/rccm.201808-1493OC.

Drugs

Indications