A new study finds a respiratory effort marker to be particularly informative for women and mild OSA cases.
Key takeaways:
- A new peer-reviewed study validates Sunrise’s REMOV marker, which measures respiratory effort burden.
- The study finds that REMOV correlates more strongly with patient-reported symptoms than the AHI, particularly in women.
- The marker captures clinically relevant burdens in patients with low AHI scores, addressing the frequent mismatch between AHI and symptoms.
- Data shows REMOV values rise linearly at low AHI levels (0-15 events/h) before flattening at higher levels (>30 events/h).
A new peer-reviewed study in Nature Communications Medicine reports that Sunrise Group’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered marker of respiratory effort burden, REMOV, outperforms traditional polysomnography metrics in predicting patient-reported symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
The study highlights the potential of REMOV to bridge the gap between measured event frequency and the patient experience, particularly for women and individuals with mild OSA.
OSA is typically diagnosed and graded using the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). However, the burden of symptoms—such as fatigue, daytime sleepiness, and depression—often correlates weakly with AHI. To address this, Sunrise developed a home sleep test with respiratory effort measurement validated against esophageal pressure.
The newly published study examined 1,000 adults referred for suspected OSA. Participants underwent overnight polysomnography complemented by a Sunrise recording to measure REMOV, which captures the percentage of sleep time spent with increased respiratory effort. Symptom assessment was conducted using validated questionnaires.
Researchers found that patient-reported symptoms are more strongly linked with REMOV than with other polysomnography metrics, including AHI. This correlation was particularly strong among women. Additionally, the data showed that REMOV captures clinically relevant burdens in patients with low AHI scores, a group where the mismatch between symptoms and AHI is frequent.
Regarding the relationship between the metrics, the study observed that REMOV values increase as AHI values increase. This rise is almost linear at low AHI values (0-15 events/h), eventually flattening at higher AHI values (>30 events/h).
“Fatigue and sleepiness matter most to patients, yet symptom severity isn’t always reflected by high AHI values,” says Laurent Martinot, co-founder and CEO of Sunrise Group, in a release. “REMOV offers an accurate view of respiratory effort, helping clinicians understand what’s driving symptoms and identify patients who may be overlooked by AHI-centric assessment. By capturing what AHI can miss, we also realize the true burden of OSA is likely bigger than we thought, and we can help more people get the care they need.”
According to the company, these findings validate Sunrise Group’s approach to diagnosing sleep apnea by shifting focus from merely counting breathing events to assessing the broader picture of patient burden. This method aims to help clinicians understand disease impacts more effectively than traditional methods allow.
Founded in 2015, Sunrise Group developed an FDA-cleared and CE-marked chin-worn sensor for at-home sleep apnea diagnosis using AI-supported analysis of mandibular jaw movements. The company also operates Dreem Health, a US-based virtual sleep clinic.
