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Study Objectives: Postoperative development of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been attributed to the fluid overloaded state of patients during the postoperative period. In this context, alterations in cardiac autonomic regulation caused by OSA may explain the increased postoperative risk for adverse cardiovascular events. This study tests the hypothesis that individuals with fluid overload-induced OSA will experience autonomic dysregulation, compared to those without fluid overload-induced OSA. Methods: Twenty-one normotensive, nonobese (mean body mass index 24.5 kg/m2) males (mean age 37 years) underwent a sleep study. Participants were randomly assigned to infusion with saline during sleep either at the minimum rate (control) or as a bolus of 22 mL/kg body weight (intervention). Participants were blinded to the intervention and crossed over to the other study arm after 1 week. Measures of heart rate variability were calculated from electrocardiography recordings presaline and postsaline infusion in the intervention arm. Heart rate variability measures computed were: standard deviation of the RR interval; root mean square of successive differences; low-frequency, high-frequency, and total power; and the ratio of low-frequency to highfrequency power. Results: Although presaline infusion values were similar, postsaline infusion values of the standard deviation of the RR interval and high-frequency power were lower in the group whose apnea-hypopnea index increased in response to saline infusion, compared to the group whose apnea-hypopnea index did not increase in response to saline infusion (P

Leg fluid accumulation during sedentary behaviours such as sitting can lead to leg edema and associated adverse health consequences. This study investigates the use calf muscle electrical stimulation (ES) to reduce seated leg fluid accumulation. Thirteen non-obese, normotensive men (mean age 51 yr.) with sleep apnea were enrolled in the study. Participants first lay supine for 30 minutes to equalize fluid distribution and then sat for 150 minutes. While seated, participants received either active or sham ES of the calf muscles, according to random assignment. Participants returned one-week later to cross over to the other study condition. Leg fluid was measured continuously while sitting using the bioelectrical impedance method. Fluid accumulation in the leg was reduced by more than 40% using active ES, compared to sham ES (∆ = 51.9 ± 8.8 ml vs. ∆ = 91.5 ± 8.9 ml, P

The accumulation of fluid in the legs due to sedentariness can be a health risk in extreme cases. Negative health impacts associated with leg fluid accumulation include leg edema and risk of blood clots. Furthermore, fluid accumulating in the legs is accompanied by fluid shift into the upper body which is also associated with health risks such as: increased blood pressure when lying down, respiratory problems in people with heart failure, and increased sleep apnea. Understanding the pattern by which fluid accumulates in the legs can aid in the development of devices for reducing leg fluid accumulation. The purpose of this study was to characterize the time course of fluid accumulation over a two-and-half-hour seated period. Non-obese participants with sleep apnea and no other co-morbidities were included in the sample as part of a larger study. Leg fluid was measured continuously using a method of bioelectrical impedance. Participants were first asked to lie supine for 30 minutes as a washout, and then sat with their legs still for two and a half hours. The main finding of this study is that the pattern of leg fluid accumulation differed in the first 45 minutes compared to the latter 105 minutes. In the first 45 minutes, fluid accumulated according to first order exponential function. In the latter period, fluid accumulated according to a linear function. The initial exponential accumulation is likely due to the large increase in capillary pressure caused by rapid blood flow into the legs due to gravity, leading to substantial filtration of blood plasma into the tissue spaces. The latter linear portion likely represents continued slow filtration of fluid out of the vasculature and into the tissue spaces. This is the first study to show that fluid accumulation in the legs is a combination of an exponential and linear functions. The linear increase identifies that there is no foreseeable point in which leg fluid stops accumulating while sitting for prolonged periods.