Meaning & use
upper airway resistance
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountablemedical
The degree to which the nose, mouth and throat resist the flow of breathed air.
Grammar: Usually uncountable: resistance increases, not 'resistances'.
Patterns
- increased upper airway resistance
Narrow nasal passages can raise upper airway resistance during sleep.
The sleep clinic measured her upper airway resistance overnight.
Increased upper airway resistance may cause loud breathing and daytime tiredness.
Common combinations
- increased upper airway resistance
- Increased upper airway resistance can interrupt sleep.
- measure upper airway resistance
- Doctors measure upper airway resistance with sensors.
- reduce upper airway resistance
- Surgery may reduce upper airway resistance.
- upper airway resistance syndrome
- He was diagnosed with upper airway resistance syndrome.
Synonyms and how they differ
- airflow resistance
- Airflow resistance is a looser term and can apply to any part of the airways, while upper airway resistance names the nose and throat.
- nasal resistance
- Nasal resistance covers only the nose, a smaller region than the full upper airway.
- airway obstruction
- Airway obstruction implies a blockage, whereas resistance describes a measurable degree of difficulty even without a full block.
Word family
- resist verb
- to oppose or work against
- resistance noun
- opposition to a flow or force
- resistant adjective
- not easily affected or moved
- airway noun
- the passage air uses to reach the lungs
Commonly confused: upper airway resistance or sleep apnea?
upper airway resistance vs sleep apnea
Sleep apnea involves actual pauses in breathing, while upper airway resistance means harder breathing without full pauses.
Practice
A sleep specialist says a patient's nasal narrowing increases ____. Which phrase fits?
Choose one answer.
Upper airway resistance is difficulty of airflow through the nose and throat, which a narrow nose would increase. The other phrases are unrelated.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “upper airway resistance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.