'Fat tongues' may be behind sleep apnoea
GPs could ask all patients about snoring as fatty tongues can occur in even slim people, say study authors
13th January 2020
Doctors may have a new health message to deliver to patients who snore, in the wake of findings into obstructive sleep apnoea — your tongue is too fat.
Slimming down this body part emerged as a key factor in improvements in obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA), according to a study from researchers from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, US.
They used MRI imaging to measure the effect on the upper airways of a 10% weight loss in 67 patients with obesity and OSA.
The scans showed reducing tongue fat was the primary reason