Functional organization of the insula in men and women with obstructive sleep apnea during Valsalva

Study Objectives Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients show impaired autonomic regulation, perhaps related to functional reorganization of the insula, which in healthy individuals shows sex-specific anterior and right dominance during sympathetic activation. We examined insular organization of responses to a Valsalva maneuver in OSA with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Methods We studied 43 newly diagnosed OSA (age mean ± SD: 46.8...