Do You Didgeridoo, if Prescribed?

A didgeridoo is a unique wind instrument of the indigenous northern Australians. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe", according to Wikipedia. Regular playing a didgeridoo has been found to have a beneficial effect in people suffering from obstructive sleep apnea. Swiss researchers found that didgeridoo lessons and daily practice at home over a 4-month period decreased daytime sleepiness and partner-rated sleep disturbance, and improved the measured degree of tissue oxygenation. The subjective quality of sleep was not changed, however. The researchers suggest that playing this instrument might train the muscles of the upper airways, which control airway dilation and wall stiffening.

T he therapy was reported to be well accepted by the patients. There’s no mention, however, as to whether the patients’ partners preferred the reduction in snoring to the added noise of the didgeridoo.