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Snoring pill - silent nights in sight?
A pill that could stop you snoring and help you and your partner get a good night’s sleep is being developed by a team of British and American scientists
The team, from BTG, the life sciences company, claim that a daily dose of the drug, known as BGC20-0166, can help combat the common sleep disorder - obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSA) - one of the major causes of snoring.
The pill is a mix of two existing drugs that work by affecting areas of the brain linked to increased muscle tone in the airway.
In an initial trial 39 OSA patients were given either the new pill, or one of the drugs that make up the pill, or a placebo for a month. Overnight tests were done after 14 and 28 days to determine the number of times patients briefly stopped breathing as a result of OSA. When this happens, the patient wakes up with a start, usually with a very loud snore. The team found that patients taking BGC20-0166 were much less likely to suffer from poor quality sleep due to interrupted breathing than the placebo group. And, because of this, they snored less too.
‘The results from this trial demonstrate the potential of this pharmacotherapy to decrease sleep apnoea in some patients and to normalise it in others.’ said sleep expert, Dr Thomas Roth, Director of the Sleep Disorders and Research Centre at Henry Ford Hospital, who is serving as an advisor to the BTG programme. ‘Future research is needed to more precisely define the role of BGC20-0166 in apnoea therapy.’
However Marianne Davey, co-founder of the British Snoring and Sleep Apnoea Association thinks that it is too early to get excited about the single pill solution: ‘While we welcome new research, previous studies using similar drugs used to tighten the airways have shown little success in reducing the symptoms of day time sleepiness associated with OAS. This is a very small study and further research is needed before any solid conclusions can be made.’
OSA is a common sleep disorder affecting an estimated 4 per cent of men and 2 per cent of women in the UK. It mostly occurs in middle age especially in people who are overweight or obese. It is characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep. These episodes occur repeatedly and are caused by the muscles of the airway relaxing and obstructing the airflow. When breathing stops the brain automatically wakes up the sufferer in order to breathe again. Sufferers and their partners are often tired and distracted during the day because of the poor quality of their sleep.
At present drug treatments for OSA have shown little success. Sufferers are advised to try and lose weight and cut out alcohol before turning in. Other treatment options include devices worn inside the mouth that help keep the airway open. If all else fails the most effective treatment is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which involves wearing a mask at night connected to an air supply.
More on sleep and snoring
- Dealing with sleep apnoea
- How to stop snoring
- Sleeping badly is harder on women
- Sleep myths examined
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Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
