The Efficacy of Twin-Block Appliances for the Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of twin-block appliance in the treatment of children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Methods: Two independent reviewers conducted a systematic review of seven databases from database establishment until October 16, 2021. There were no language restrictions. The outcomes were changes in apnea-hypopnea index (AHI), oxyhemoglobin desaturation index (ODI), and lowest arterial oxygen saturation (lowest SaO₂). National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) tool was used to assess the quality of the studies included.

Results: A total of 207 articles were screened for relevance, and 6 of them met the inclusion criteria for our meta-analysis. Four of the studies were case series, 1 was nonrandomized control trial, and 1 was a randomized crossover clinical trial. After twin-block therapy, there was a significant decrease in AHI (4.35 events/hour, 95% CI: 4.04, 4.66, p ≤ 0.001). The lowest SaO₂ significantly increased by 9.17% (95% CI: 12.05, 6.28, p ≤ 0.001). Sensitivity analysis by excluding studies one by one showed stable and favorable results in lowest SaO₂ and AHI.

Conclusions: Results from the meta-analysis showed that the use of twin-block appliance significantly decreased AHI and significantly increased lowest SaO₂. Hence, twin-block appliance therapy may be an effective method for the treatment of pediatric OSA. Further large sample size randomized controlled trials are needed to assess this treatment efficacy in children with obstructive sleep apnea.